Grant programmes for defence and dual-use technology: Horizon Europe Office in Ukraine, NRFU, presented opportunities of the Horizon Europe Programme
On June 11, an event focussed on European funding opportunities for Ukraine for the defence and dual-use technologies – “Grant Programmes for Defence and Dual-Use Companies: Opportunities from the European Defence Fund and Horizon Europe” – was held. The event was organised by the Brave1 initiative with the support of the European Defence Fund (EDF) and the Horizon Europe Office in Ukraine, whose members joined as speakers.
Igor Taranov, Head of the Department “Horizon Europe Office in Ukraine”, NRFU, presented Horizon Europe as the largest EU programme for funding science and innovation, which in 2025 offers a wide range of calls for scientists, innovators, enterprises and organisations in various areas. The Head of the Office also informed the participants about Ukraine’s participation in the Programme, the success rate of the submitted applications and, most importantly, the amount of funds raised from the EU by Ukrainian participating organisations.
Besides, the Head of the Department said that the European Commission will invest more than €7.3 billion in research and innovation as part of the Horizon Europe Work Programme 2025. Igor Taranov stressed that one of the key aspects of this year’s work programme is to support Ukrainian researchers. In particular, opportunities will be created for scientists and organisations affected by russia’s aggressive war, and €10 million will be allocated to Ukrainian researchers as part of the MSCA4Ukraine initiative.
“No doubt, the continued support of Horizon Europe Office in Ukraine, which builds stronger research relations between the European Union and Ukraine and facilitates access to EU funding for Ukrainian researchers, is very important,” – he said in his speech.
For his part, Oleksandr Moiseiev, Leading Officer, Horizon Europe Office in Ukraine, NRFU, presented the tools for participation in the Horizon Europe Programme, as well as its current opportunities for manufacturers of dual-use technologies. The discussion focused on thematic projects, types of funding specifically for startups, scalers, SMEs, and mid-cap companies working in the field of technological innovation. Among other things, the Office’s specialist spoke about competitions in areas related to the activities of domestic businesses in the field of defence and dual-use technologies, as well as where to look for them, how to apply for participation and calculate the budget.
A special attention should be paid to the speech of Martin Jõesaar, representative of the Directorate General for Defence Industry and Space, European Commission, who is the Programme Officer for the EU Defence Innovation Office in Kyiv. He informed about grant programmes from the European Defence Fund (EDF) and reminded how Ukrainian organisations can be involved in its projects. In addition, Martin Jõesaar highlighted the benefits for European partners in engaging Ukrainian participants in EDF projects.
Presentations from the speakers caused great interest among the participants of the event, who raised many questions and expressed their wish to receive consultations during the Q&A Session, as well as discussed the possibilities of further close cooperation during the Networking Session that followed the working part of the event.
