Ukrainian weapons could soon become Europe’s weapons.
At the large-scale Rearmament Europe—Readiness 2030 symposium, the Ukrainian delegation presented three key defense projects: the production of ammunition, drones, and high-tech weaponry.
All of these initiatives fall under the EU’s new SAFE initiative, which envisions up to €150 billion in investments into the joint European defense industry.
On 21 May, the EU approved the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) program, which provides for investments of up to €150 billion to develop the defense sector and opens new investment opportunities for Ukraine.
The regulatory framework adopted under SAFE simplifies and accelerates procedures for joint defense procurement and allocates funding across key defense priorities.
The first category includes ammunition and missiles, artillery systems, and precision strike weapons. The second covers air and missile defense systems, surface and underwater naval capabilities, artificial intelligence tools, and electronic warfare.
Additionally, in final defense products, the value of components and spare parts produced outside the European Union, the European Economic Area, or Ukraine must not exceed 35% of the total product cost.
The day after the SAFE decision, Ukraine participated in the Rearmament Europe—Readiness 2030 symposium. It brought together national armaments directors from all 27 EU member states, Ukraine, the UK, Norway, Albania, and North Macedonia, as well as EU and NATO representatives.
Ukraine presented projects for the production of drones and ammunition, as well as proposals in other critical areas, including missile systems and electronic warfare tools, according to the country’s Defense Ministry.
Ukraine was represented by First Deputy Defense Minister Serhii Boiev, who emphasized that in just three years, Ukraine has scaled up its defense production from $1 billion to $35 billion.
