EU Reopens €21.3 Billion in SAFE Defense Loans, Urges Joint Projects With Ukraine

The European Commission on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, opened a second round of its Security Action for Europe (SAFE) defense loan program, putting €21.3 billion in unspent money back on the table and urging member states to use it for joint weapons purchases with Ukraine. The Commission asked governments to prioritize air and missile defense, drones and counter-drone systems, and ammunition and missiles, according to its official announcement.

How the second SAFE round works

The new money is part of the €150 billion in long-term SAFE loans the EU adopted in May 2025. It became available because several countries asked for less than they were first allotted. Euronews named Italy, Hungary and France as borrowing far less than expected. The second call is open to all 27 member states and runs until Nov. 13, Euronews reported. The Commission said it will tell countries their tentative allocations within two weeks after the deadline.

So far, the EU has approved loan agreements for all 19 member states that joined SAFE, and the Commission has signed 16 of them. It has paid out almost €13.5 billion to 11 countries that asked for pre-financing, the Commission said. Under EU rules summarized on EUR-Lex, the loans can run for up to 45 years with a grace period of up to 10 years on principal, and pre-financing can reach 15% of a loan.

Ukraine can join, but cannot borrow

Ukraine is allowed to take part in joint purchases under SAFE, but it cannot take out SAFE loans itself. Member states borrow the money for their own defense and decide how to use it within the program’s rules, Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said at a Brussels briefing, as reported by Hromadske. Joint projects with Ukraine are encouraged, not required, and the €21.3 billion is not reserved for Ukraine.

“We are definitely encouraging our member states to do whatever they can to do joint projects at the moment,” Regnier said, according to Euronews. “These leftovers can definitely benefit national defence industries, but also Ukraine in the current context.” Defense Commissioner Andrius Kubilius sent European governments a letter on Thursday urging deeper cooperation with Ukraine through joint ventures, Euronews reported.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had promised the plan in her State of the Union address last month. “Using the remaining funds from SAFE, we will be setting up a new programme for joint projects with Ukrainian companies,” she said.

By the numbers

The reopened €21.3 billion is about 14% of SAFE’s €150 billion total, by a TBR calculation. Even if every euro went to projects involving Ukraine, it would cover less than a third (about 30%) of the €70 billion budget gap Euronews reported Kyiv is facing. Poland is by far the largest borrower, with €43.73 billion, or about 29% of the program, and has earmarked 89% of its money for Polish arms makers, according to Euronews. The €13.5 billion disbursed so far is 9% of the total.

Who is likely to apply

Eight EU countries never joined SAFE, including Germany and the Netherlands, which can borrow more cheaply on their own, Euronews reported. That leaves only a few, such as Poland, Ireland and Greece, likely to want new loans. Until May, SAFE allowed single-country purchases; now new borrowing requires multi-country procurement, and the Commission hopes countries will bring in Ukraine to meet that rule, though there is no minimum share for the partner country. An unnamed EU official told Euronews there was “no guarantee that this will happen.”

The current regulation does not allow unused loans to go directly to Kyiv. The Council of the EU says that of the 19 national plans submitted, 15 include projects with Ukraine, according to its SAFE overview.

The push comes as Russian strikes continue, including this week’s drone strike on the Dnipro railway station that killed 14 people, and as Ukraine presses Washington for Patriot air-defense deliveries. For earlier diplomacy, see our report on Putin’s call with the Finnish and Norwegian leaders.

Sources

• European Commission: Commission invites Member States to use €21.3 billion under SAFE
• Euronews: Brussels hopes unspent defence loans may help plug Ukraine’s budget hole
• Hromadske: EU opens €21.3 billion defense loan round
• EUR-Lex: Security Action for Europe (SAFE) summary

Additional sources

• Council of the EU: What is SAFE?