Azernews.Az

France's attempt to limit the United Kingdom's access to the European Union's defense fund has reportedly backfired, leaving Paris unable to secure the full amount of financing it had sought for joint Franco-British defense projects, AzerNEWS reports.

According to the Financial Times (FT), citing three sources, France requested €16.2 billion from the EU's defense lending mechanism but received approval for only €15.1 billion, as projects involving British participation failed to meet eligibility criteria that France itself had championed.

The report notes that the European Commission excluded several projects linked to the multinational missile manufacturer MBDA, jointly owned by Airbus, the UK's BAE Systems, and Italy's Leonardo. Among the affected programs are the production of Storm Shadow/SCALP long-range cruise missiles, which have been supplied to Ukraine.

The funding stems from the €150 billion Security Action for Europe (SAFE) lending mechanism approved by Brussels last year to boost joint European defense procurement.

France had pushed for rules requiring 65% of the value of projects financed through SAFE to originate from the EU single market—including Norway and Iceland—or Ukraine. Contractors from countries that have not concluded both a security and defense partnership agreement with the EU and a financial contribution arrangement are limited to 35% of project value. According to the report, Canada is currently the only non-EU country that meets both conditions.

Although the UK signed a defense partnership agreement with the EU last year, negotiations over its financial contribution reportedly stalled after France insisted the European Commission seek more than €6 billion from London. While that figure was later reduced to €2 billion, the two sides were unable to reach a final agreement.

A senior EU diplomat told the Financial Times that the rejected Franco-British projects highlight the need to "build bridges" between political ambitions and the practical realities of implementing joint defense initiatives.