The programme “paves way for the first joint industrial projects under the EU budget”. The announcement comes shortly after France and Germany signed a bilateral friendship treaty aimed at the creation of a European Army.
The European Commission has announced the first joint defence project in the history of the European Union, according to the press release published on the Commission’s website.
“To protect our citizens, Europe needs cutting-edge, inter-operable defence technology and equipment in novel areas like artificial intelligence, encrypted software, drone technology and satellite communication,” Commissioner Elżbieta Bieńkowska,responsible for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, added. “Thanks to the European Defence Fund, we are making this happen. We are ensuring Europe becomes a stronger security provider.”
The EU announcement comes shortly after German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron signed a new friendship treaty with the intention of building a Franco-German “common military culture” and “contribute to the creation of a European army.”