Ministry of Defence is taking action to help Slovakia's defence businesses get EU funding
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- Date: 10.02.2022
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Today (10 February 2022), Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď welcomed the new Head of the European Commission's Representation in Slovakia, Mr Vladimír Šucha to the Ministry of Defence. During their first bilateral meeting, they discussed the tasks of the EC Representation in Slovakia. Among them is to encourage and prepare Slovakia's defence businesses to respond to the EDF calls for submission of proposals to get funding for their collaborative projects from the European Defence Fund (EDF).
To do that, the Ministry of Defence has set up an MOD Committee for EDF, which is made up of experts from across the MOD, whereas the intent is to extend this initiative to other government departments. Currently, the Committee is working to identify prospective SVK defence businesses, including the priorities of their specialisms (e.g. nanotechnology, geolocation, databases, AI, etc.).
Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “Slovakia has quality specialists who are able to prepare competitive projects, as evidenced by the successes of several companies in last year's competitions. The European Defence Fund has a budget of €8bn for 2021-2027. With our support, I believe the funds could also be used for Slovak R&D defence industry projects.”
Also discussed today was the fight against hybrid and cyber threats and disinformation, as well as support for EU initiatives such as Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO). The MOD also welcomes the EC's efforts to process a new European Space Strategy (ESS), in order to incorporate security and defence into the document.
Funded from the EU budget, the European Defence Fund (EDF) is the European Commission's initiative to support collaborative defence research and development across EU Member States. Those eligible for EDF funding are the legal entities based in the EU.
To do that, the Ministry of Defence has set up an MOD Committee for EDF, which is made up of experts from across the MOD, whereas the intent is to extend this initiative to other government departments. Currently, the Committee is working to identify prospective SVK defence businesses, including the priorities of their specialisms (e.g. nanotechnology, geolocation, databases, AI, etc.).
Defence Minister Jaroslav Naď said: “Slovakia has quality specialists who are able to prepare competitive projects, as evidenced by the successes of several companies in last year's competitions. The European Defence Fund has a budget of €8bn for 2021-2027. With our support, I believe the funds could also be used for Slovak R&D defence industry projects.”
Also discussed today was the fight against hybrid and cyber threats and disinformation, as well as support for EU initiatives such as Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO). The MOD also welcomes the EC's efforts to process a new European Space Strategy (ESS), in order to incorporate security and defence into the document.
Funded from the EU budget, the European Defence Fund (EDF) is the European Commission's initiative to support collaborative defence research and development across EU Member States. Those eligible for EDF funding are the legal entities based in the EU.
