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de Cordoue, B. “War in Ukraine: a transformational impact on the European defence industry”, Blogpost, Jacques Delors Institute, May 2025

In the space of three years, the Russian-Ukrainian conflict has triggered a reawakening of the arms industry in Europe. Significant changes are already taking place within this military-industrial ecosystem. This change is affecting the players in the European Union, but it is being led very actively by Ukraine and its industrialists, who are really operating in a war economy. Both revealing and accelerating this reality, the European Commission has just published the work programme for 2025 of the European Defence Fund (EDF), opening up access to it, for the first time and without restriction, to Ukrainian companies.

This trend is set to continue, irreversibly changing some of the parameters governing a sector that has traditionally been protected by its sensitive and sovereign nature. To appreciate the upheaval underway, it is sufficient to take stock at four levels:

1. Changing priorities for the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB)
2. Emergence of a new player: the Ukrainian industry
3. Creation of industrial partnerships
4. The EU as a transmission belt