For the first time, the EU has opened the possibility of directing funds from the Ukraine Facility program to support dual-use technologies. Previously, such areas were not eligible for funding.
This was stated by Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Anna Hvozdiyar during the Rebuild Ukraine Expo held in Warsaw, Poland.
This support will be available to manufacturers of modern navigation and communication systems, next-generation drones, aerospace technologies, and precision metallurgy.
‘The expansion of the Ukraine Facility to dual-use technologies is the result of several months of joint work between Ukraine and the EU. It opens access to financial resources — primarily over €140 million — which the EU will allocate from the Ukraine Investment Framework as loans and grants for companies. This will allow Ukrainian companies to scale faster, attract investment, and create products that strengthen the resilience of Ukraine and all of Europe,’ she emphasized.
During a working meeting with Anna Yarosh-Fris, Director of the Ukrainian Service at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for European Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, and Orest Tokach, Head of the Private Investment and Strategic Industries Department of Ukraine (European Commission), practical issues of implementing this instrument, potential funding volumes, and next steps were discussed.
During the panel discussion ‘Opening Investments in Strategic Sectors to Strengthen Ukraine’s Resilience,’ the Deputy Minister of Defense stressed that supporting critical technologies and production is a shared interest of Ukraine and EU countries.
Additionally, Deputy Minister Hvozdiyar welcomed participants of the session ‘Investments in Resilience and Defense.’ In her speech, she highlighted the scale and dynamics of the development of Ukraine’s dual-use sector.
‘Ukraine is building a modern, competitive, and innovative defense and dual-use industry. Just last year, over three thousand enterprises produced dual-use products worth €5.5 billion — and this is only part of the potential we are demonstrating to our partners today,’ she noted.
As part of the visit, a meeting was held with representatives of Estonian businesses to discuss deepening cooperation between the defense industries of Ukraine and Estonia.
The visit program in Poland also included a meeting with a delegation from the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade of Australia (JSCFADT), where the parties discussed opportunities to deepen Ukrainian-Australian cooperation in the defense sector.
