The European Union has announced the allocation of 6 billion euros to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine as part of a new program called “Quality Military Advantage.” This was stated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during her annual address to the Members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Program “Quality Military Advantage” and Its Goals
According to von der Leyen, the new initiative aims to invest in enhancing the capabilities of the Ukrainian military, with a particular focus on innovative technologies. Europe plans to leverage its own industrial potential to support Ukraine in countering the ongoing drone warfare on the battlefield. She emphasized that Ukrainian ingenuity should become a strategic advantage, and joint industrialization will strengthen the country’s defense capabilities.
“We will propose a new program. We call it ‘Quality Military Advantage.’ This will support investments in the capabilities of the Ukrainian armed forces… We can use our industrial power to support Ukraine in countering this drone war. We can help turn Ukrainian ingenuity into an advantage on the battlefield – and into joint industrialization,” von der Leyen stressed.
Challenges in Drone Technology and Support for Ukraine
The President of the European Commission noted that through the active use of drones, Ukraine accounts for over two-thirds of the losses of Russian equipment. At the same time, Russia is quickly catching up, particularly due to Iranian “Shahed” drones and mass industrial production. The European Union plans to provide funding through the ERA (Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration) loan, which is based on revenues from frozen Russian assets, and to create a drone alliance together with Ukraine.
Ursula von der Leyen emphasized that Ukraine has unique developments but needs to scale up production to maintain military advantage and strengthen European security.
It is worth noting that Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal recently stated the need for approximately 6 billion dollars to secure key types of drone weaponry — FPV drones, interceptor drones, long-range drones, and missiles — by the end of 2025.
In August, the Ministry of Defense reported the acceptance into service of over 25 models of Ukrainian interceptor drone systems in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Additionally, President Volodymyr Zelensky instructed the newly appointed Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal to “urgently” finalize all necessary contracts regarding drones for the Defense Forces in July.