EU Council greenlights five joint defence programmes, Ukraine joins most

On Sept. 28 the Council of the EU ratified five EU-wide defence projects designed to close capability gaps across the bloc. The European Commission introduced the plan in July, targeting air and missile defence, maritime and seabed security, space operations, and drone and counter-drone technology. Ukraine is slated to participate in four of the programmes, excluding the space effort, and will play a key role in the drone hub called DECODER, which costs between €3.5 billion and €5.5 billion.

The air-defence scheme, EU-FIAMD, could reach €55-80 billion by 2040, addressing Ukraine’s need for anti-ballistic missile systems. Malta remains the only EU member not joining the drone project. The most costly initiative, the Eastern Flank Watch, is budgeted at €60-100 billion through 2036 and focuses on the bloc’s eastern border.