The President of the
European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen has announced that the EU would disburse another €3.3billion to Ukraine on Friday to procure missiles and drones, following a phone call with Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, reports Sahara Reporters.
In a read-out of the call published on her X account, von der Leyen said Russia is “relentlessly targeting Kyiv, trying to make daily life impossible for its inhabitants,” adding: “We stand with them. And with all Ukrainians.”
Von der Leyen revealed that the EU had approved funding last week for Patriot systems through its Ukraine Support Loan. But she made clear that “clearly more is needed,” announcing that the Commission was ready to use remaining funds from the SAFE instrument to launch a new programme for joint EU-Ukraine defence projects.
The centrepiece of that plan is to develop a European air and missile defence system together, building on the joint anti-ballistic Freya system.
Von der Leyen framed the cooperation as a way to combine “Ukraine’s battlefield experience and innovation with Europe’s technology and industrial strength.”
The announcement does not stand alone. On 10 September 2026, the European Commission approved an additional €6.1 billion for Ukraine to procure air defence, ammunition, drones and electronic warfare equipment — explicitly allowing Kyiv to purchase PAC-3 missiles for its Patriot systems, funded through the €90 billion Ukraine Support Loan.
Earlier, in July 2026, the Commission had already disbursed €3.9 billion (drones) and €3.47 billion (drones, missiles, air defence and Gripen fighter jets).
Von der Leyen reiterated that the EU has already mobilised nearly €15 billion for Ukraine this year, with “more coming.”
But she noted that the two leaders discussed the reforms needed in the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, to unlock further funding and keep Ukraine moving forward on its path toward the Union.
That “cash-for-reforms” logic is embedded in the Ukraine Facility, the EU’s flagship funding framework for Kyiv. Its “Ukraine Plan” pillar totals €38.5 billion — €5.5 billion in grants and €33 billion in loans — with disbursements conditional on Ukraine meeting quarterly reform commitments covering macroeconomic stability, budget oversight and the structural reforms required for EU accession.
To date, the Commission has disbursed €29.5 billion under that pillar, roughly 77% of the total planned for 2024–2027.
Von der Leyen noted that she will travel to New York next week for the UN General Assembly, where she will deliver a simple message to Ukraine’s friends around the world: “Europe is stepping up. Now others must step up their support too.”
The timing is notable. The 80th session of the General Assembly had just closed on 8 September, with pressure on multilateralism a central theme. With the EU having committed more than €220 billion in overall support to Ukraine, von der Leyen’s appeal is clearly aimed at urging other international partners to share the burden.
EU support for Ukraine now extends well beyond military assistance. In the defence sphere, disbursements under the Ukraine Support Loan framework have accelerated sharply in 2026: between June and August alone, the Commission completed several defence-specific allocations covering drones, missiles, air defence systems and fighter jets.
The loan instrument itself has two components — €60 billion to strengthen Ukraine’s defence capabilities and defence industry, and €30 billion in budget support to keep the state functioning.
In parallel, defence-industrial integration between the EU and Ukraine is accelerating. Under a signed letter of intent, the EU-Ukraine defence industrial pact aims to advance joint production of drones and counter-drone systems by the end of 2026, and to expand joint anti-ballistic missile production capacity by 2028.
The strategic logic runs both ways: Ukraine gains funding and capacity; Europe gains battle-tested technology and innovation.
More broadly, the SAFE instrument (“Security Action for Europe”) is itself a central pillar of the EU’s ReArm Europe / Readiness 2030 plan, authorising the Commission to raise up to €150 billion on capital markets to support member states’ defence investments in areas such as air defence and drones.
Using remaining SAFE funds for joint EU-Ukraine projects marks the first time the instrument — originally designed for member states — has opened a substantive cooperation channel to a non-member country.
