The money is part of the EU’s €648 billion recovery fund set up to revive the bloc’s economy after the Covid-19 pandemic struck in 2020. As the program’s Dec. 31, 2026 deadline nears, countries are trying to secure their share of funding before it’s too late.
Warsaw asked Brussels to repurpose its allocated funding for local environmental projects because of a low take-up by cities and towns, the Polish government official told POLITICO.
Under the review, Poland will be able to channel EU funding toward projects with a civilian and military dimension such as building roads for tanks and shelters as well as developing military technology. The money, however, cannot be directly spent on weapons purchases as this is not allowed by the EU’s own rules.
Poland told the EU that the newly allocated defense funds will be handled by a new body operating under the umbrella of the Polish development bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego, a workaround that could allow the government to spend the money past the recovery fund’s expiry date.
Poland is so far the only country that has asked to repurpose its post-Covid funding toward defense, but others might follow suit as the 2026 deadline approaches.
With 4.7 percent of gross domestic product earmarked for defense in 2025, Poland is also the only EU country that comes close to Trump’s requested 5 percent NATO target for military spending.
