Strasbourg, 26 November 2025
Member of the European Parliament and member of the committee on security and defence (SEDE) successfully included an amendment benefiting SMEs in the report on the European Defence Readiness 2030: assessment of needs.
This report puts forward proposals that complement the ideas set out in the European Commission’s ReArm Europe Plan that focuses primarily on the budgetary facilities that could be offered to Member States to finance their increased defence spending, and does not address how defence industry companies can obtain access to debt or capital financing.
Therefore, the report on the European Defence Readiness 2030: assessment of needs aims at addressing current obstacles to defence financing in Europe, such as the length and complexity of procurement procedures, combined with payment delays between main contractors and subcontractors in the defence sector, limit both market-potential visibility and cash flow.
Zovko successfully included an amendment calling for the introduction of a minimum mandatory provision of 20% of project value for SME participation in the supply chain, of which at least 75% must consist of European content requirement in every defence project financed by the EU.
Let us remind that, as member of the committee on security and defence (SEDE) of the European Parliament, Zovko has consistently advocated for cutting red tape in the defence sector and for putting forward measures to help SMEs thrive in the context of the strengthening of the EU’s defence industry.