(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA))
BRUSSELS, Dec 14 (KUNA) -- The European Parliament and European Union Member States on Monday reached an agreement on a 7.9 billion euro (USD 9.5 billion) Europe Defence Fund to support EU common Research and Defence projects in the seven years to come.
The European Defence Fund will provide a key contribution to Europe's sovereignty, protecting and defending its citizens, said the European Commission in a statement welcoming the agreement.
It will promote defence cooperation among companies, research actors and between the EU Member States to foster innovation and develop state-of-the-art defence technology, it noted.
The Fund will also take into consideration Member States' cooperation within other regional and international organisations such as NATO.
The EU's geopolitical context has changed dramatically in the last decade. The situation in its neighbouring regions is unstable and it faces a complex and challenging environment in which new threats, such as hybrid and cyber-attacks, are emerging, and more conventional challenges are returning, it said.
Following today's agreement, a vote will take place in the European Parliament and the EU Council of Ministers to formally endorse the text early next year. (end)
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