The European Parliament supports a defense program that promises faster money for drones, artificial intelligence, and new military technologies.

The European Parliament wants the European Union to finance defense technologies more quickly that can effectively reach the equipment of European armies, in a security context changed by Russia's war against Ukraine. The industry and defense committees have adopted their position regarding the creation of the AGILE program, a pilot tool of 115 million euros aimed at rapid innovation in defense by 2027.

In short

The ITRE and SEDE committees of the European Parliament have supported the creation of the AGILE program for rapid innovation in defense. The pilot program is set to have 115 million euros and to operate in 2027, within the current multiannual budget of the EU. AGILE will target technologies such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, cyber capabilities, space systems, and unmanned autonomous systems. MEPs want simpler rules for SMEs, start-ups, and scale-ups, including funding in the form of lump sums where possible. Products supported by AGILE are expected to be considered eligible for purchases intended for Ukraine through the Ukraine Support Loan.

The AGILE program, Programme for Agile and Rapid Defence Innovation, is designed as a response to a central lesson from the war in Ukraine: military technology is changing rapidly, and the advantage can come from the ability to test, adapt, and produce new solutions quickly. Drones, autonomous systems, artificial intelligence, cyber, and space technologies can directly influence an army's ability to see, strike, protect, and communicate.

In the form supported by MEPs, AGILE should accelerate innovation cycles and help new technologies to be adopted more quickly by the armed forces of member states and the European defense industry. The goal is for promising ideas not to remain stuck in long-term research projects but to reach testing, production, and operational use more quickly.

The program will focus on emerging and disruptive technologies, including artificial intelligence, quantum computing, robotics, cyber capabilities, space systems, and unmanned autonomous systems. These areas are relevant because they can reduce costs, increase response speed, and provide capabilities that traditional military systems develop more slowly.

MEPs insisted that the program be accessible for innovative SMEs, start-ups, and scale-ups. In defense, small firms can have very advanced technologies but do not always have the administrative capacity to manage complex European procedures. Therefore, Parliament proposes that grants be awarded, where possible, in the form of lump sums, so that companies can focus on achieving agreed production, not on bureaucracy.

Ivars Ijabs, the rapporteur for the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, said that Europe cannot afford to be slow when the threat is fast. "AGILE is our response: rapid funding, reduced bureaucracy, and a firm door closed to those who do not share our values," said the Renew MEP from Latvia.

The rapporteur for the Committee on Security and Defense, Tonino Picula, said that the program creates a faster path from defense innovation to operational deployment. He linked support for SMEs and start-ups to reducing dependencies on third countries, facilitating procurement, including for Ukraine, and transforming promising technologies into real capabilities for European security.

An important element of Parliament's position concerns Ukraine. MEPs say that due to the urgent need to support Ukraine with the most innovative and disruptive products from the European defense industrial base, any product supported by AGILE should be considered eligible for purchases through the Ukraine Support Loan.

This wording can have practical effects. Instead of European funding for innovation and support tools for Ukraine functioning separately, Parliament wants products developed with AGILE support to be able to enter the procurement circuit more easily for Ukrainian needs. In the context of war, the speed of procurement can matter as much as technological performance.

MEPs also call for stricter controls on the transfer and ownership of results funded by AGILE. Any export of exclusive licenses to non-associated third countries should be notified and approved. The goal is that technologies supported with European money do not end up, through licenses or transfers of ownership, in hands that contradict the security and defense interests of the EU.

Parliament also wants to strengthen the rules regarding intervention incentives, so that entities from third countries that contradict the security and defense interests of the EU and member states do not receive European funding. This part of the text reflects growing concern over strategic dependencies and the protection of sensitive technologies.

Borys Budka, the chairman of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, said that Russia's aggression has rewritten the rules: the party that innovates faster wins. He emphasized the goal of a four-month deadline for granting funding, so that real money reaches agile start-ups without being blocked in years of paperwork.

Budka said he insisted that funding through lump sums remain the implicit rule, as the most innovative European SMEs do not have a grants department. In his view, the test of the AGILE program is also important for the future of the European Fund for Competitiveness and for the next generation of defense programs.

Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, the chair of the Committee on Security and Defense, said that the mandate for AGILE sends a clear signal: European innovation in defense must be driven by operational needs and deliver the necessary capabilities to address Europe's most urgent shortfalls.

The program is presented as a time-limited pilot that will operate in 2027, under the current multiannual financial framework 2021-2027. The proposed budget is 115 million euros. The experience gained is expected to provide lessons for the next EU multiannual budget, and Parliament calls on the Commission to assess whether the program, if proven effective, should be continued, adapted, and strengthened.

The joint position of the two committees was adopted with 76 votes in favor, 8 against, and 7 abstentions. MEPs also voted for the opening of negotiations with the Council, with 83 votes in favor and 8 against, without abstentions. Interinstitutional negotiations are expected to begin under the Irish presidency of the Council, after the Council adopts its own position.

AGILE comes on top of an existing European framework for defense innovation that has been primarily oriented towards large and long-term projects. The new program seeks to respond to another need: rapidly emerging technologies that can be tested quickly and adapted quickly to the battlefield or the requirements of European armies.

The political stakes are broader than the sum of 115 million euros. Parliament is testing a model of faster, simpler funding that is closer to the pace of technology start-ups. If the model works, it could become a benchmark for future European defense and competitiveness programs.