Defence: European Parliament and EU Council agree on investment and permits

Brussels – “MEPs have struck provisional agreements with the Cypriot presidency of the Council of the European Union on the following proposals: defence readiness and facilitating defence investments and conditions for defence industry; the acceleration of permit-granting for defence readiness projects.” The announcement was made by the European Parliament’s Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE) on its social channels, following the two institutions’ agreement late yesterday evening (19 May) in the context of the defence‑preparedness proposals presented by the Commission in June 2025. Known as the omnibus package, the measures aim to simplify the rules to accelerate the development of defence capabilities and infrastructure by Member States and industry. “The agreement on the proposals concerning defence readiness and the granting of permits is crucial to facilitating defence investment and improving conditions for the defence industry, so that we can respond effectively to security challenges,” a Cypriot official stated.

There were three legislative proposals under negotiation by the two institutions. They called for the introduction of a fast-track authorisation regime for defence projects across the Union, reducing the duration of the authorisation procedure to sixty days; a cut in administrative burdens under the European Defence Fund for applicants and greater participation of Ukrainian entities in the Fund; more joint procurement and the acceleration of cross-border transfers of defence products. 

The provisional agreement reached last night on defence readiness is conditional on a comprehensive agreement on the entire defence omnibus package, comprising the three separate proposals. The text of the provisional agreement will now be presented to the Member States at Coreper – the Committee of Permanent Representatives, i.e., the meeting of the ambassadors of the 27 Member States to the EU – for their approval. “We hope to conclude negotiations on the entire package, in order to achieve the objectives of operational readiness and competitiveness in the defence sector,” said the official, while SEDE has guaranteed that “MEPs will reconvene to finalise the last pillar of this package in the near future.“