Drones for Ukraine: Brussels seeks founding members for its new war alliance
The European Commission has published a call for expressions of interest to join as founding members of the EU-Ukraine Drone Alliance. The initiative, announced by President Ursula von der Leyen in the 2025 State of the Union address, aims to build European capacity in the field of military drones and anti-drone systems, in close coordination with Kyiv. Applications are open until May 25, 2026.
In short, this is another stage of a now consolidated path: the European Union transforming itself, piece by piece, into a military-industrial actor, with Ukraine as a privileged laboratory and defense companies as the main beneficiaries.
What is it about?
The Alliance presents itself as an “industry-led” initiative, a formula that, translated, means that its activities and priorities will be defined by weapons manufacturers, startups in the sector, and end users from the EU, EEA-EFTA countries, and Ukraine. The selected founding members will form the Alliance’s first Board and will have a say in its strategic choices. The official launch is expected in the coming months.
The Commission justifies the initiative by citing “recent and repeated violations of the airspace of EU Member States,” which supposedly demonstrate the “urgency of creating a flexible and cutting-edge European capacity” in this sector. The reference is to the 2030 defense readiness roadmap and the drone and anti-drone systems action plan already adopted by Brussels.
The EU we don’t see
There is, however, another EU, one that struggles to emerge from Brussels’ agendas. The one of 43,000 premature deaths a year due to air pollution in Italy, as certified by the European Environment Agency. The one of young people who cannot find work, of families who cannot make ends meet, of infrastructure falling apart, and of healthcare services crumbling under the cuts imposed by budgetary parameters.
That EU, evidently, can wait. Applications for the Drone Alliance, however, close on May 25, and the rush is understandable: there is an industrial ecosystem to build, and contracts do not sign themselves.
The Ukrainian model as inspiration
In the official description of the initiative, the Commission writes that “a stronger European capacity in the drone sector should be based on the lessons learned from Ukraine”. A country at war, therefore, serves as the reference model for European industrial development. Not peace, not reconversion, not sustainability: war, with its ability to accelerate arms production and break down political resistance.
The implicit message is unequivocal: the Europe of the future is built around defense. Everything else, social cohesion, ecological transition, workers’ rights, is no longer a priority.
Who can apply?
The idea that this is yet another call tailored for someone specific is a lingering doubt. Only legal entities with “proven experience in the defense drone ecosystem” in the EU or Ukraine, and with a commitment to active participation in the Alliance, will be able to apply.
Photo EC – Audiovisual Service Cooperators Producer : CE – Service audiovisuel Photographer : Dati Bendo Copyright European Union, 2026
