National Defense

EU Pushes Massive New Weapons Buying Spree With Ukraine

Håkan Dahlström/Wikimedia Commons

The European Union is making €21.3 billion, or roughly $23.7 billion, in defense loans available to member states while urging them to purchase weapons alongside Ukraine as Brussels expands its military buildup.

The European Commission opened the second funding round Thursday under its Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative, inviting all 27 EU countries to request loans, including those that declined to join its initial round, according to the Commission. Brussels wants participating governments to prioritize air defenses, drones, ammunition and missiles for their own armed forces and Ukraine’s military, the commission said.

The latest allocation is not a new €21.3 billion commitment to Kyiv. It represents unused borrowing capacity within a €150 billion defense loan program adopted in May 2025, after some governments requested less funding than originally anticipated, per the European Commission.

The loans go to EU member states, which must repay the money, rather than directly to Ukraine. Ukrainian firms can nevertheless supply equipment under eligible procurement projects, according to the EU Council.

The EU finances the program by issuing bonds and providing long-term loans to participating governments. Those governments remain responsible for repayment, per the council.

The Commission is encouraging governments to include cooperative purchases with Ukraine in their defense spending plans, although it has not made Ukrainian participation mandatory, according to its Thursday announcement.

Governments retain responsibility for borrowing while Brussels wants the remaining funds to benefit both their domestic defense industries and Ukraine, European Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier explained during a Thursday briefing, according to the European Commission.

“We have obviously associated Ukraine from day one,” Regnier said, adding that the commission was encouraging countries to pursue joint projects as fighting continued, according to the commission briefing.

Nineteen member states joined the original SAFE program, requesting more than €130 billion in financing, according to the European Commission.

The EU has approved loan agreements for all 19 countries, signed agreements with 16 and distributed nearly €13.5 billion in advance payments to 11 governments, per the Commission.

The Commission has not identified which governments will receive money under the new round or how much each will get. It expects to inform applicants of tentative allocations within two weeks after the submission deadline, according to its announcement.

The initiative builds on existing defense cooperation with Kyiv. Fifteen of the 19 national SAFE plans submitted in 2025 already included projects involving Ukraine, according to the EU Council.

SAFE also requires most purchases to involve at least two participating countries, although limited exceptions allow a single member state to buy equipment independently. The goal is to increase production while limiting fragmented weapons purchases across European militaries, according to the EU Council.

The rules also favor European production. No more than 35% of the component costs in eligible weapons systems can generally come from outside the EU, Ukraine or designated European partner countries, according to the council. Eligible purchases reach beyond immediate battlefield needs. The program also covers artillery, ground combat equipment, cybersecurity, naval equipment and electronic warfare capabilities.

SAFE is a central component of the EU’s Readiness 2030 initiative, a broader effort to increase military spending and expand European industrial capacity, according to the EU Council.

The second loan round remains an invitation to submit financing requests, not a final weapons order or direct delivery commitment to Ukrainian forces. Proposed projects must still move through the EU’s application and approval process.