EC approves first wave of defence funding for eight member states, including Bulgaria, under SAFE

The European Commission (EC) said on January 15 that it had endorsed the national defence plans of eight EU member states, marking a milestone in Europe’s push to strengthen its security.

The EC submitted a proposal to the Council to approve financial assistance for Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Portugal and Romania.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “Last year, the EU has made more progress in defence than in decades before.

“The White Paper and the Readiness Roadmap 2030 enabled Member States to mobilise up to 800 billion euro for defence,” Von der Leyen said.

“This includes the 150 billion euro for joint procurement – SAFE. We have now approved an initial batch of SAFE plans for Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Portugal and Romania. The others will follow shortly after. It is now urgent for the Council to approve these plans to allow fast disbursement,” she said.

This decision follows a rigorous assessment of the countries’ “National Defence Investment Plans” under the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative, the EC said.

The Commission said that the endorsement paves the way for the first wave of low-cost, long-term loans to be released, allowing these nations to urgently scale up their military readiness and acquire needed modern defence equipment.

It also integrates Ukraine into the EU security ecosystem and ensures our support is both rapid and sustainable. 

The funding levels for each country were provisionally set in September, based on principles of solidarity and transparency.

For example, 1.18 billion euro has been earmarked for Cyprus, while 16.68 billion euro is tentatively allocated for Romania. The estimate for Bulgaria is 3.2 billion euro.

This group of eight member states are entitled to around 38 billion euro after the loan agreements will be signed.

 These funds will provide a vital boost to strategic capabilities where they are needed most, the EC said.

With the Commission’s assessment complete, the Council of the EU now has four weeks to adopt the implementing decisions. Once approved, the Commission will finalize the loan agreements, with the first payments expected to hit the ground in March 2026.