Brussels – The European Council has given the final green light for the new SAFE (Security Action for Europe) instrument, an initiative aimed at marking a turning point in European defence cooperation. Today (27 May), with the formal adoption of the regulation, SAFE becomes the first major EU military investment programme designed to support Member States in strengthening their capabilities through joint procurement, with a value of up to €150 billion.
The fund will be used to finance large-scale projects in the European defence industry, with the aim of increasing production capacity, filling critical gaps, and ensuring that military supplies are available when needed. Interested Member States will be able to access long-term loans at competitive rates, based on national plans to be submitted to the EU executive within six months. To foster cooperation, SAFE stipulates that projects must, in principle, be led by at least two countries. However, on a transitional basis and in response to the current geopolitical urgency, national projects will also be eligible.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, called the approval of the regulation “a milestone” and emphasised the political value of the new instrument: “Europe must now assume a greater share of responsibility for its own security and defence. With SAFE, we are not only investing in state-of-the-art capabilities for our Union, for Ukraine and for the entire continent; we are also strengthening the technological and industrial base of European defence”. According to Adam Szłapka, the Polish Minister of European Affairs, this is an unprecedented tool to effectively safeguard the Union from possible external threats: “The more we invest in our defence and security, the more we will discourage those who wish to harm us”.
SAFE will be open not only to EU countries but also to third-party partners. The Ukraine and the EFTA states (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) will be able to participate in procurements under the same conditions as EU members, both as co-purchasers and suppliers. The regulation also allows for the participation of candidate countries, potential candidates and states that have signed security and defence partnerships with the EU, including the United Kingdom. There are also clauses for the conclusion of bilateral or multilateral agreements with these countries, further extending the eligibility conditions.
The agreement stipulates that investments will focus on the capabilities deemed priorities by the European Council, such as ammunition, missiles, artillery, land combat capabilities, equipment, cyber security, and military mobility. For air and missile defence systems, naval capabilities, drones and anti-drone systems, strategic transport, space technologies, artificial intelligence and electronic warfare, suppliers will need to have control over the design and technical evolution of the product, guaranteeing European technological autonomy. The principle of ‘Buy European‘ is also confirmed: to be eligible, projects will have to ensure that at least 65 per cent of the value of the components comes from EU, EFTA, or Ukrainian suppliers.
SAFE’s approval, however, did not come without controversy. The European Parliament was completely excluded from the decision-making process after the Commission activated an emergency clause to bypass the ordinary legislative process. In April, Parliament President Roberta Metsola had threatened to appeal to the European Court of Justice, backed by a unanimously approved legal opinion and a condemning parliamentary resolution. “For the Commission and the Council, democracy is an optional extra”, denounced the 5 Star Movement delegation, demanding the annulment of the plan approved “without the correct legal basis”.
The instrument will officially enter into force on 29 May 2025, the day after it is published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Member states will then be able to start submitting national plans to access the funds. The EU Parliament, on the other hand, has two months to submit an appeal to the Court of Justice.
English version by the Translation Service of Withub
