Brussels.- The European Commission (EC) disbursed 3.47 billion euros to Ukraine this Thursday for the purchase of drones, missiles, and fighter jets, as part of the defense window of the 90 billion euro Ukraine support loan.
This disbursement includes, on one hand, an additional tranche of the first product schedule regarding the acquisition of drones and, on the other, additional funding for long-range jet-powered drones, missiles, and Gripen fighters.
Read more: Six people die in attacks between Russia and Ukraine
“Today we are investing another 3.47 billion euros to help protect Ukraine’s skies. With this new disbursement, as part of our 90 billion euro loan package, we are helping Ukraine defend its population,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated in a press release.
“Furthermore, we are bringing our defense industries closer, combining Europe’s industrial scale with Ukraine’s unparalleled innovation. This is our new Drone Pact, which is taking shape. And may this new support send a clear message: every Russian attack reinforces Ukraine’s determination to be free, and our determination to stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes,” he stressed.
This disbursement is part of the support loan for Ukraine, endowed with 90 billion euros, of which 60 billion are intended to strengthen the country’s defense capabilities and industry.
Within this item, the Commission had already disbursed 3.9 billion euros on June 30 and 1.1 billion on July 15, before today’s payment.
In 2026 alone, 28.3 billion euros are expected to be disbursed within this defense item, a figure that includes both what has already been paid and what is yet to come. The final distribution will be closed in September, with the adoption of product schedules, and payments will continue until the end of the year.
Expansion of the Ukraine Facility
Aside from this disbursement, the EU Council modified this Thursday the so-called Ukraine Facility and its corresponding plan, with the roadmap of reforms that Kyiv must fulfill before receiving the disbursements from that instrument.
The modification incorporates an additional 8.3 billion euros in funding for 2026, coming from the budgetary item of the support loan to that country.
The Ukraine Facility, in force since March 1, 2024, provides more than 50 billion euros in stable funding, in the form of grants and loans, to support the recovery, reconstruction, and modernization of Ukraine between 2024 and 2027.
Since its entry into force, it has already disbursed 6 billion euros in bridge financing, 1.89 billion in pre-financing, and seven tranches totaling approximately 21.6 billion euros.
