Clear answers on how the country intends to make use of the new European investment instrument Defence Equity Facility, as well as transparency, are being requested by PASOK MP and head of the National Defence Sector of the party Michalis Katrinis, through a relevant question and request for the submission of documents to the Minister of National Defence.
As noted in the question, at the European level the creation of the new European investment instrument Defence Equity Facility, amounting to 1 billion euros, was announced for the financing of businesses active in the fields of defence, space, and cybersecurity.
At the national level, the President and CEO of ELKAK stated that contracts totaling approximately 120 million euros are already being implemented for the development of Greek defence prototypes.
This statement raises reasonable and critical questions regarding transparency, the project selection process, the expected results, as well as the overall national planning for the utilization of the new European financing instruments for the benefit of the Greek defence industry, the PASOK MP states.
He underlines, in fact, that the Defence Equity Facility is a European investment instrument and not a grant program of the Ministry of National Defence, while in the projects of the European Defence Fund (EDF) the evaluation of proposals is carried out by the European Commission and independent evaluators and not by the Ministry of National Defence.
Through his question, Michalis Katrinis asks for clarification of the national strategy for the utilization of the Defence Equity Facility, so that Greek businesses are in a position to effectively make use of the available European financing instruments, the method of selection and support of Greek businesses, and the expected measurable results from the above funding.
At the same time, he requests that all detailed data on these contracts and every available document concerning the specific funding and the planning for the utilization of the Defence Equity Facility be submitted.