The European Fee will suggest a number of choices for selling analysis and growth (R&D) associated to applied sciences with dual-use potential, particularly, those who can be utilized for each civil and navy functions, similar to drones and satellites.
The EU government intends to evaluation its present funding programmes to evaluate whether or not they present ample and strategic help to face the rising geopolitical challenges outlined within the European Financial Safety Technique.
This new method to R&D associated to dual-use know-how is detailed in a white paper the Fee is because of publish on 24 January as a part of the Financial Safety Package deal. Euractiv obtained an early model of the doc.
The white paper particulars a number of choices that can be topic to a public session operating till 30 April. Stakeholders would possibly request that their submissions, or components of them, stay confidential given the subject’s delicate nature.
Present setting
The EU’s flagship analysis programme, Horizon Europe, is presently devoted completely to civil issues, whereas the European Defence Fund (EDF) is solely devoted to defence functions. Nonetheless, the Fee has been attempting to bridge the hole between the 2 with a number of initiatives.
As a part of a broader push for de-risking from exterior dependencies on third international locations in vital sectors, most notably from China, the EU has been striving to foster a technological edge over applied sciences vital for the Union’s financial safety, which regularly have dual-use potential.
“The EU might due to this fact have an vital function to play in offering focused help to twin use, on the pathway from R&D to deployment, proper by to market uptake or public procurement,” reads the white paper.
In keeping with the Fee, the dearth of synergies between EU programmes results in unexploited potential for civil R&D to spill over into the defence sector and from the defence R&D to generate civilian functions.
Attainable choices
The doc highlights the necessity to discover extra cross-fertilisation within the context of R&D help associated to dual-use applied sciences, notably in integrating new applied sciences developed by defence funding into the civil sector.
The reference is that current expertise has proven the strategic relevance of enhancing civil safety on vital infrastructure, border management, the resilience of important companies, and addressing social unrest prompted by disinformation campaigns and cyberattacks.
On this regard, the Fee has devised three potential choices for addressing these challenges. The primary consists of creating the most effective use of the present setting, while the opposite two would require a legislative intervention.
Within the first state of affairs, the EU government envisages leveraging the prevailing measures which are but to provide the meant results. These measures embrace EDF’s spin-in calls, supporting dual-use firms with the InvestEU programme, and introducing exploitation obligations for Horizon Europe’s initiatives associated to vital applied sciences.
The parameters for receiving funding below programmes like Horizon Europe could possibly be tweaked to develop synergies higher. Joint investments between the Fee and the European Funding Financial institution in vital communication, disruptive applied sciences and house are additionally talked about.
Secondly, the white paper outlines that the unique civil focus could possibly be eliminated in chosen components of the successor to the Horizon Europe programme, which is able to run till 2027.
This focused method would keep the analysis programme’s open participation of third international locations, with restrictions restricted within the components involving applied sciences with dual-use potential.
“This feature would enable programming spin-in calls involving defence-related initiatives’ outcomes instantly within the successor programme to Horizon Europe, whereas in flip, the successor programme to the EDF would offer follow-up funding for defence functionality growth of essentially the most promising civil-related venture outcomes,” the paper continues.
Lastly, the Fee suggests establishing a selected instrument for dual-use R&D. Nonetheless, this feature doesn’t appear to be the popular path as it would add extra complexity and result in overlaps of R&D actions carried out completely for the civil and navy sectors.
This instrument might have its personal price range, guidelines and governance. Alternatively, it could possibly be a mechanism to advertise the market uptake of dual-use applied sciences, like a Joint Endeavor, or by a procurement instrument.
As well as, the paper floats the thought of flagship initiatives on dual-use applied sciences to place “the EU because the lead buyer for companies of public curiosity within the defence and civil area,” citing counter-drone techniques and autonomous autos as examples.
[Edited by Zoran Radosavljevic]
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