On 5 March 2024, the European Commission and the EU’s High Representative presented the first-ever European Defence Industrial Strategy at EU level and proposed an ambitious set of new actions to support the competitiveness and readiness of its defence industry.
The European Defence Industrial Strategy (EDIS) sets a long-term vision to achieve defence industrial readiness in the European Union. As a first immediate and central means to deliver the Strategy, the European Commission is presenting a legislative proposal for a European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP) and a framework of measures to ensure the timely availability and supply of defence products.
The Strategy outlines the challenges currently faced by the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) but also the opportunity to tap its full potential and sets out a direction for the next decade. To increase European defence industrial readiness, the Commission states that Member States need to invest more, better, together, and European. To support Member States in achieving these goals, the European Defence Industrial Strategy presents a set of actions aiming at:
- Supporting a more efficient expression of the Member States’ collective defence demand;
- Securing the availability of all defence products through a more responsive EDTIB, under any circumstances and time horizon;
- Ensuring that national and EU budgets support with the necessary means the adaptation of the European defence industry to the new security context;
- Mainstreaming a defence readiness culture across policies, notably by calling for a review of the European Investment Bank’s lending policy this year;
- Developing closer ties with Ukraine through its participation in Union initiatives in support of defence industry and stimulating cooperation between the EU and Ukrainian defence industries;
- Teaming up with NATO and Europe’s strategic, like-minded and international partners, and cooperating more closely with Ukraine.