Moldova to receive largest-ever EU air defense support package, officials say
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Moldova is set to receive 100 million euros ($114 million) from the EU to bolster its air defenses, marking the largest European defense package approved for the country, two officials told the Kyiv Independent on July 10.
Russia's constant ballistic missile attacks on Kyiv have exposed a shortage of adequate air defenses not just in Ukraine, but across Europe.
Moldova is among the countries most exposed, both because it neighbors Ukraine and because a contingent of Russian soldiers remains in the Russian-occupied region of Transnistria.
A senior EU official and a national diplomat have confirmed to the Kyiv Independent that the package of air defense support is set to be approved on July 13.
The money will be paid out of a fund called the European Peace Facility, which first became operational in 2021. It is composed of contributions paid directly by the 27 EU countries.
Over the past five years, Moldova has received a total of 197 million euros ($225 million) from the fund through a series of disbursements, the latest being a 20 million euro ($23 million) payment for air defenses in April 2025
The EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, pushed to radically increase contributions to Moldova via the fund to 120 million euros ($137 million) annually during a visit to the country in May.
The July 13 vote would, on its own, cover the vast majority of Kallas' request. It remains unclear whether any further payment will be proposed for Moldova in the second half of 2026.
For European air defenses more broadly, the European Commission proposed a bloc-wide project for countries to fund and collaborate on, with an estimated price tag of between 55 billion and 80 billion euros ($63 billion-$92 billion).
The idea would still need to be discussed by EU countries, with the next opportunity being an informal meeting of defense ministers scheduled for Sept. 1.
