Article 3 · Regulation (EU) 2026/2387

Contents

Article 3Objectives#

1.The general objective of the Programme is to support the capacity of SMEs, including innovative start-ups and scale-ups, to innovate rapidly to ensure the rapid delivery of emerging and disruptive defence products, with a focus on cost-efficiency, in order to address the most recent and fast evolving challenges faced by Member States’ and associated third countries’ armed forces, in particular those stemming from Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The Programme shall thereby foster the competitiveness of the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) and contribute to strengthening the Union’s defence industrial readiness, while reducing strategic dependencies on non-associated third countries across the full spectrum of defence technologies.

2.The Programme has the following specific objectives:

(a)to significantly accelerate innovation cycles of emerging and disruptive defence products developed across the Union by SMEs, taking into account the urgent needs of Member States and associated third countries and tapping into the innovation potential of the Union’s industry as a whole; and

(b)to increase the uptake by Member States and associated third countries, as well as by defence industrial prime contractors, system integrators and first-tier subcontractors, of emerging and disruptive defence products developed by SMEs, including through dedicated matchmaking, thereby supporting the scaling-up of such SMEs across Europe, promoting their integration into cross-border defence supply chains, enhancing the resilience and security of supply for such products, contributing to the development of defence innovation capacity across the Union and ultimately reinforcing the technological edge of Member States.

Defined terms · 10

Show every defined term

background information
means any information necessary for, or useful to, the implementation of the Programme, generated before or outside the framework of an action supported by the Programme and provided to and used for the purposes of that action;
control
means the ability to exercise decisive influence over a legal entity directly, or indirectly through one or more intermediate legal entities;
defence product
means any defence-related product as referred to in the Annex to Directive 2009/43/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, as well as works, supplies and services directly related to those products for any and all elements of their life cycle within the meaning of Article 2, point (c), of Directive 2009/81/EC;
emerging and disruptive defence product
means an enhanced or completely new defence product that:
executive management structure
means a body of a legal entity, appointed in accordance with national law and, where applicable, reporting to the chief executive officer of that entity, which is empowered to establish the legal entity’s strategy, objectives and overall direction, and which oversees and monitors the legal entity’s management decision-making;
foreground information
means data, know-how or information generated in the implementation of the Programme, whatever its form or nature;
legal entity
means:
non-associated third-country entity
means:
results
means any tangible or intangible effect of an action supported by the Programme, such as data, know-how or information, whatever its form or nature and whether or not it can be protected, as well as any rights attached to that effect, including intellectual property rights;
small and medium-sized enterprises
(‘SMEs’) means small and medium-sized enterprises as defined in Article 2 of the Annex to Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC;