New opportunities for defence firms as EU steps up support for Ukraine
The Shark is a fixed-wing catapult-launched ISR UAV developed by Ukrspecsystems. (Photo: Harry Lye)
The European Commission is looking for startups and other innovators to address challenges across the land, air and sea domains.
Europe is stepping up funding efforts for Ukraine, increasing the revenues available for defence firms designing, manufacturing or supplying the Ukrainian war effort through 2027.
Last week, the EU’s Commissioner for Economy Valdis Dombrovskis welcomed the European Council’s decision to approve, on 4 February 2026, a new €90 billion (US$106.79 billion) loan to Ukraine to cover the years 2026-2027. Of this, €60 billion is for defence needs and €30 billion for budget support.
The commissioner anticipated that Ukraine would receive the first payment under the new loan by April this year, though its disbursement is subject to Ukraine agreeing
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