The European Defence Fund (EDF) received a record 612 project proposals under its 2026 calls, the European Commission announced on 2 October. That is 49% more than last year.
The calls offer €1.006 billion for collaborative defence research and development. The 2025 calls drew 410 proposals for €1.065 billion.
According to the Commission, this year's topics include a European endo-atmospheric interceptor for missile defence, a next-generation main battle tank, a multiple rocket launcher and a semi-autonomous naval vessel. Other calls cover areas such as quantum-secured networks and electronic warfare.
Ukrainian applicants could take part for the first time. The Commission said this was done because Ukraine's association agreement with the EDF is expected to enter into force soon. Ukraine's parliament ratified the agreement in September, as previously reported by NDS.
Proposal numbers were particularly high in the €60 million non-thematic calls for small and medium-sized enterprises.
Independent experts will now evaluate the proposals. Results are expected by March 2027. The previous round ended with €1.07 billion for 57 projects, and more than 20 of them had Nordic participants, as previously reported by NDS.