European Union (EU) finance ministers decided this Friday to support increased funding from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the European security and defense industry of at least six billion euros.
At the Ecofin meeting in Luxembourg, responsible European ministers decided to “favorably welcome the action plan presented by the President.” [do BEI]Nadia Calviño, update the definition of dual-use projects and expand credit lines for SMEs. [pequenas e médias empresas] and innovative start-ups in the security and defense sectors,” the EU bank said in a statement.
To this end, the EIB is “adapting its lending policies to the security and defense sector, while maintaining its financial capacity,” the institution adds.
In particular, from May 1, the bank will create a special working group and a single center for projects in the field of security and defense. The measure aims to accelerate investment and access to EIB group finance for EIB clients. sector.
A total of six billion euros of funding is available under the European Strategic Security Initiative, an amount that will strengthen the EIB’s “already significant support for the European security and defense sector within the existing framework,” HUH Bank emphasizes.
“These proposals are subject to internal approval within the EIB Group,” he says.
At a time of high geopolitical tension, the EU has made investment in European defense and security a priority, advocating for increased EU production and procurement.
To this end, countries want to rely on funding from the EU bank, an orientation also defended by the institution’s new president, Nadia Calviño, who took office earlier this year.
The EIB is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its member states to finance investments consistent with the political objectives of the community.
It is expected that in the future the bank will be able to change the requirement that dual-use projects receive more than 50% of expected revenues from civilian use, thus meeting the requirements of government financial institutions that limit funding to equipment and infrastructure that serves military or defense needs , as well as civil needs.
As part of the European Strategic Security Initiative, which was strengthened after the war in Ukraine caused by the Russian invasion, the EIB has committed eight billion euros in funding for the period 2022 to 2027.
In addition, in January this year, the European Investment Fund launched a €175 million facility to support SMEs and start-ups in the field, such as cybersecurity.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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