Here is a short report on the recently published European Defence Fund (EDF) and Defence Policy Document 2022. To start with the Defence Paper, we are of course pleased that space is now explicitly on the agenda and that a budget line is included for the acquisition of an “operational space capability”. We come across the importance of space in various places in the memorandum, with the most emphasis under action line 5 “Innovative capability and new domains”. There it is reaffirmed that a space agenda will be issued in the short term. It is also made explicit that the Defence Space Security Centre (DSSC) will be strengthened and that investments will be made in small satellites. Besides a satellite constellation, it is also explicitly mentioned that the current radars will be made suitable for space observation, in short a Space Situational Awareness (SSA) capacity. We also encounter space as part of Integrated Air and Missile Defence (IAMD) and, of course, space is an important source of information on which action line 6 focuses entirely. In short, an excellent perspective for our sector. The paper also puts a lot of emphasis on national and international cooperation, including explicitly the EDF. The 2022 call for the EDF has also just been opened. That offers great opportunities for many of you, both upstream and downstream.
The full texts of the Defence Paper and the EDF work programme 2022 can be found here:
Defensienota 2022: Lees de Defensienota 2022 | Defensienota 2022 | Defensie.nl