Ukraine’s parliament adopted two laws on 16 September which ratified separate agreements with the EU: Law No. 4989-IX (Bill No. 0390) on Ukraine’s participation in the European Defence Fund (EDF), and Law No. 4990-IX (Bill No. 0391) on financing measures under the European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP). These laws are designed to help ensure access to EU defence funding for Ukrainian companies.
Latvia has selected Czechoslovak Group (CSG) subsidiary Excalibur Army’s Morana platform for its 155mm wheeled artillery system requirement, despite having previously selected Swedish company BAE Systems Bofors’ Archer. Upon reviewing the final offer, Latvia concluded that procuring the Swedish platform would exceed available funding and fall outside approved delivery schedules. However, BAE Systems has disputed this assessment.
Spain’s Navantia has signed MoUs with Croatian firms Iskra Shipyard and AITAC to explore industrial cooperation under Croatia’s Multi Role Corvette (MRC) programme. Meanwhile, South Korea’s HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) has also signed a teaming agreement with Iskra Shipyard to explore cooperation related to the same programme.
South Korea’s Hanwha Aerospace and Estonia’s Milem Robotics are pursuing local capability development for unmanned systems in Australia and New Zealand, as well as in Korea. The two parties announced on 7 October that they would expand cooperation in the unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) sector. The partnership focuses on joint development, technology transfer and export promotion.
Indian AI warfare company Flying Wedge Defence & Aerospace (FWDA) has signed a partnership agreement with Portugal’s Keydef to manufacture autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAVs) and swarm interceptors in Portugal. In parallel, FWDA and Keydef are working with the University of Minho on a research programme to develop an unmanned platform.
The UK’s Rolls-Royce Power Systems and Saudi Engines Manufacturing Company (Makeen) have signed an individual licence agreement for the local part-production and assembly of mtu Series 2000 marine engines in Saudi Arabia. According to Rolls-Royce, the agreement signed on 21 September will make it the first company to licence the production of high-speed engines in the country.