EC hails mini-defense omnibus deal, Ukraine may join European Defense Fund

The European Commission has welcomed the political agreement reached yesterday between the European Parliament and the European Council, which opens the way for Ukraine to join the EUR 7.3 billion European Defence Fund (EDF).

"This is an important step forward in defence cooperation between the EU and Ukraine and in strengthening Europe’s collective security and industrial resilience. It also paves the way for Ukraine’s gradual integration into the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB)," the European Commission said on Thursday of the agreement reached on Wednesday.

The EC stressed that the agreement is part of a wider legislative package to increase defence-related investment under the EU budget, the so-called "mini-omnibus". "It will make EU programmes more flexible and better coordinated to support Europe’s defence technological and industrial base, innovation and infrastructure - from military mobility to dual-use technologies," the statement said.

In addition, the European Commission noted that the agreement reached is a key element in the implementation of the ReArm Europe Plan and a direct complement to the mid-term review of Cohesion Policy and the Defence Readiness Omnibus. "This marks a new milestone in strengthening cooperation with Ukraine and its defence industrial ecosystems," the EC stressed.

In particular, the co-legislators previously agreed to extend the scope of the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) to cover defence technologies and to allow the EIC Accelerator funding programme under Horizon Europe to support dual-use technologies and defence innovation.

The Digital Europe Programme (DEP) will also be extended to dual-use technologies, while the Cohesion Fund (CEF) will be adapted to better support investments in military mobility. The regulation also amends the EDF to better support the development of the European defence industry and to provide more flexible support for breakthrough technologies for defence. The European Commission clarified that this new legislation complements the Commission’s Mid-Term Review of Cohesion Policy, which entered into force on 19 September 2025, which provides for a number of flexible options to encourage Member States to carry out meaningful reprogramming on several priorities, including defence and competitiveness.