ΕUROPEAN COMMISSION
DAILY NEWS
Brussels, 22 December 2025
EU releases €2.3 billion to support Ukraine's financial needs
The European Commission has disbursed €2.3 billion to Ukraine to support the country's finances and public administration, as it continues to fight Russia's invasion.
This is the sixth regular payment under the Ukraine Facility, the Union's key instrument for supporting Ukraine's recovery, reforms and path towards EU membership. It helps stabilise the state budget while enabling Kyiv to advance ambitious structural reforms essential for its European integration.
With this sixth tranche, the EU has now disbursed €26.8 billion under the Ukraine Plan since March 2024, which corresponds to nearly 70% of the funds available under the first pillar of the Ukraine Facility.
The payment follows the successful implementation of reforms in strategically important areas, including public financial management, the judicial system, financial markets, decentralisation and regional policy, the agri-food sector, the management of critical raw materials, and the green transition and environmental protection. These reforms demonstrate how the Ukraine Facility is directly driving progress on the ground, even in wartime conditions.
Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos said: “Ukraine is delivering real reforms at remarkable speed despite Russia's aggression. Through the Ukraine Facility, the EU is driving reforms that bring Ukraine closer to the EU while supporting critical needs, including winter energy security. The Ukraine Facility will remain essential to sustain reform momentum and Ukraine's European future.”
Ukraine submitted a partial payment request on 11 November. On 11 December, the Council endorsed the Commission's assessment that Ukraine had successfully fulfilled eight reform indicators linked to this sixth regular quarterly payment, as well as one outstanding indicator from the fourth payment.
Further information is available in our factsheet.
(For more information: Guillaume Mercier – Tel: +32 2 298 05 64; Quentin Cortes – Tel: +32 2 291 32 83)
Commission delivers thermal plant to supply power for 1 million Ukrainians
The European Commission has successfully relocated a full thermal power plant from Lithuania to Ukraine, completing its largest-ever coordinated logistical operation to date.
This unprecedented transfer restores critical energy capacity and directly reinforces Ukraine's national grid following sustained Russian attacks on its infrastructure. The equipment has been crucial to completing emergency repairs in several parts of the country where energy infrastructure was severely damaged. It is capable of supplying power to approximately one million Ukrainians.
The complex operation, carried out over 11 months, involved 149 shipments totalling 2,399 tonnes of equipment. Among these, 40 were oversized shipments, including exceptionally heavy transformers and stators weighing around 172 tonnes each. The support of the Polish Governmental Agency for Strategic Reserves was instrumental in ensuring the complex transport of these components.
Comprehensive support for Ukraine's energy needs
This landmark operation is part of the EU's comprehensive response to Russia's aggression against Ukraine since February 2022, coordinated through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) .
To date, EU support for Ukraine's energy sector has helped meet the needs of an estimated 9 million people, including the delivery of 9,500 power generators and 7,200 transformers via the Mechanism.
In total, the Commission has allocated over €1,2 billion for humanitarian aid programmes in Ukraine, and delivered over 160,000 tonnes of aid.
All 27 EU countries together with 6 participating states (Norway, Türkiye, North Macedonia, Iceland, Serbia and Moldova), have offered in-kind assistance to Ukraine through the UCPM. The EU has also coordinated the medical evacuation of over 4,700 Ukrainian patients to hospitals in 22 countries for specialised treatment.
Background
When emergencies occur, national authorities can activate the EU Civil Protection Mechanism to request coordinated assistance. The mechanism brings together all EU Member States and ten participating states.
The EU manages these requests for assistance through its Emergency Response Coordination Centre. This crisis hub monitors events around the globe 24/7 and ensures rapid deployment of emergency support to disaster-stricken countries, including relief items, expertise, civil protection teams and specialised equipment.
Quote(s)
The delivery of this power plant is European solidarity in action, and our most demanding logistical operation to date. I thank Lithuania, Poland, Romania and all partners who ensured the success of this colossal operation. It is a powerful demonstration of the EU’s unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s resilience, helping ensure light and heat for one million people as they face a fourth winter of Russia's war of aggression.
Hadja Lahbib, Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management
Portugal makes early €2.5 billion repayment to the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism
Today the Portuguese debt management office repaid €2.5 billion of its debt to the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism (EFSM) - the EU instrument that provides financial assistance to any EU country facing severe financial difficulties, managed by the European Commission.
The repayment relates to the financial assistance programme for Portugal in 2011-2014. Under that programme, Portugal received €24.3 billion in EFSM loans, alongside financing from the European Financial Stability Facility and the International Monetary Fund. Following an earlier repayment of €2 billion in 2019, €19.8 billion of EFSM loans remain outstanding.
The repayment was made in cash and fully covers the Commission's corresponding liabilities, ensuring that all relevant financial obligations are met. The funds received will be added to the Commission's funding pool under the diversified funding strategy and may be used to support other financial assistance programmes as needed.
The transaction does not affect bonds issued to finance EFSM loan disbursements, which will remain outstanding until their scheduled maturity.
(For more information: Balazs Ujvari - Tel.: +32 2 295 45 78; Francisca Marçal Santos - Tel.: +32 2 299 72 36)
EU agri-food trade surplus reaches highest level in over a year as exports hit a record in October
The EU agri-food trade surplus increased sharply in October 2025, reaching €6.4 billion, according to the latest Commission report. This represents an 18% increase compared to September and accounts for the highest monthly surplus in more than a year - 19% higher than in October of last year.
EU agri-food exports reached a record level in October 2025: €20.7 billion, which showed an increase of 7% compared to September and 1% higher than in October 2024. By October 2025, cumulative exports for the year came to €199.4 billion, up €3.1 billion (+2%) compared to the same period in 2024.
Export growth continued to be driven primarily by high prices for processed cocoa-based products and coffee. At the same time, exports of cereals declined, reflecting lower volumes.
EU agri-food imports remained elevated and amounted to €15.4 billion in October 2025 - 4% higher than in September, but 5% lower than in October 2024. Despite the year-on-year decline in October, cumulative imports between January and October reached €157.4 billion, an increase of €15.5 billion (+11%) compared with the same period in 2024. Imports of beef and veal went up by €596 million (+28%) during this period compared to the same time in 2024, due to both higher volumes (+17%) and prices (+9%).
More insights as well as detailed tables are available in the latest edition of the monthly EU agri-food trade report.
(For more information: Maciej Berestecki – Tel.: +32 2 296 64 83; Constanze Ulrich - Tel.: +32 2 299 38 44)
EU and Japan successfully conclude Horizon Europe negotiations
The European Commission and Japan have successfully concluded negotiations on Japan's association to Horizon Europe, the EU's flagship €93.5 billion research and innovation funding programme. The agreement, expected to be signed in 2026, represents the closest form of collaboration offered by the EU to global partners in this field. It will enable Japanese researchers to lead and coordinate their own research and innovation projects under the programme, to apply and receive funding, and to seek closer collaboration with partners in the EU and other associated countries.
The agreement specifically targets Pillar II of Horizon Europe, which tackles societal challenges through multinational collaborative projects, such as the digital transition, food security, and climate-neutral energy. Under transitional arrangements, Japanese entities can apply to Horizon Europe calls starting in 2026 and will be treated as 'eligible entities' from an associated country.
This milestone follows the recent expansion of the programme to other major global partners and scientific powerhouses, including South Korea earlier this year and, most recently, Switzerland, Egypt, Canada, the United Kingdom and New Zealand.
Japan is a key strategic partner for Europe. Bilateral relations in research and innovation have developed steadily over the past two decades, building on the 2011 Science and Technology Cooperation Agreement, a joint vision adopted in 2015, and a Letter of Intent signed in May 2020.
The conclusion of these talks — building on exploratory discussions — marks a major milestone and paves the way for strong ties in research and innovation.
For More Information
Horizon Europe
Global approach to research and innovation
International cooperation with Japan in research and innovation
Openness and international cooperation must guide the future of science and technology. We believe that scientific cooperation can build bridges, even in challenging geopolitical times. I look forward to strengthening our partnership as Japan joins the 22 countries already associated to Horizon.
Ekaterina Zaharieva, Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation
EU companies increase research and development investments in key sectors
EU companies drove strong research and development (R&D) growth in energy, health, aerospace and defence in 2024, according to the 2025 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard published today.
While the report highlights Europe's leadership in key industries, it also underscores the intense pressure from global competition, particularly in the information and Communication technologies (ICT).
In 2024, the EU's leading industrial R&D investors in the electricity and renewable energy sectors increased their R&D investment by 19.8% and capital expenditure by 17.8%. This is a positive step toward achieving the goals of the Clean Industrial Deal.
In the health sector, leading firms increased R&D investment by 13 % – a significantly higher growth rate than in other parts of the world. Additionally, European aerospace and defence firms are investing 4.8% more to increase Europe's defence readiness.
These results, published in today's scoreboard, offer key insights into global research and development dynamics.
Commission action to strengthen Europe's innovation capacity
To respond to global competition and reinforce Europe's innovation ecosystem, the Commission is advancing several initiatives aligned with the EU Competitiveness Compass, including:
The EU Startup and Scaleup Strategy, to make Europe a top destination for launching and growing global tech companies;
The European Innovation Act and the 28th Regime, expected in 2026;
The European Strategy on Research and Technology Infrastructures, improving companies' access to world-class infrastructures and R&D support;
The European AI in Science Strategy with the Resource for AI Science in Europe (RAISE), equipping scientists with the resources to adopt AI for their research.
Accelerating these initiatives is essential to help innovative ventures scale up, particularly where Europe must bolster its sovereignty and technological leadership.
Key findings
EU strategic strengths: EU companies sharply increased R&D in energy (19.8%), far exceeding growth in the US (6%), Japan (-14.2%) and China (3.8%). In health, EU growth (13%) significantly outpaced the US (7.1%), Japan (9.1%) and China (0.1%). Aerospace and defence also recorded a 4.8% rise.
Innovation hubs: Most R&D investment by the top 800 EU companies occurs in countries classified as ‘strong innovators' (Austria, Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg). This highlights the potential of supportive ecosystems to grow R&D-intensive companies.
Global momentum is slowing down: The world's top 2,000 companies invested €1,442.6 billion in R&D in 2024 (+6.3%). Growth was strongest in the US (+7.8%) and the rest of the world (+8.1%), followed by Japan (+7.1%). The EU (+2.9%) and China (+3.9%) saw more modest increases.
Sectorial focus: Four sectors - ICT software, ICT hardware, health and automotive account for over 80% of the total investment. US firms lead in ICT and health; EU firms remain global leaders in automotive.
The EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard has been published annually since 2004. The 2025 edition provides economic information from the latest financial accounts (financial year of 2024) of the world's top 2000 R&D investors and the top 800 EU-base companies. Together, these companies account for over 90% of global business-funded R&D. As a key reference for analyses and data in science, industry and policymaking, the Scoreboard data is made publicly available in accordance with the Commission's open science practice.
For more information
2025 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard
Economics of Industrial Research and Innovation
The 2025 Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard is clear: we must ensure that new technologies are developed, deployed and scaled across our economy. Today, energy is the fastest growing sector in R&D investments in the EU. Now we must strengthen our innovation ecosystems and boost our startups and SMEs so that they can contribute to our competitiveness and prosperity.