MEPs oppose defence-related projects being funded from Horizon Europe budget

MEPs on the European Parliament’s Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) committee have said any defence-related projects with military applications should be funded through dedicated instruments like the European Competitiveness Fund (ECF) and not at the expense of civil research.

This was the view expressed by many ITRE committee MEPs at a meeting on 24/03/2026 to discuss a draft report by German MEP Christian Ehler on the next Horizon Europe research.

Finnish MEP Ville Niinistö, shadow rapporteur from the Greens group, said: "We maintain the position that Horizon Europe as a whole should preserve its civilian nature across all components, including the European Innovation Council (EIC). It's important to fund defence, but that should be done fully and transparently through ECF."

Marc Lemaître, Director-General of the Commission's DG for Research and Innovation (DG RTD), reacted: "We are unsure what defence-related funding full placement under the Competitiveness Fund would mean for the EIC architecture, but we are ready to explore this."

MEPs also touched on protecting the R&I…