Portugal To Spend $145 Million On Ukrainian Made Defence Products.

Copenhagen; December 2025: Portugal will allocate 25 million euros ($29 million) annually over the next five years to purchase Ukrainian defense products, Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal announced after meeting his Portuguese counterpart, Nuno Melo, in Kyiv.

The procurement will be financed through the SAFE (Security Action for Europe) program, which offers EU member states loans at a 01% interest rate with repayment periods of up to 40 years for both new and existing defense projects.

“We discussed the continuation of cooperation, particularly in the defense industry, the prospects for mutually beneficial projects, and the long-term development of our capabilities”, Shmyhal said in a post on X. “We also focused on Ukraine’s critical defense needs to protect our people and critical infrastructure”.

He also thanked Portugal for announcing 50 million euros ($59 million) in assistance through the PURL (Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List) mechanism, which allows allies to fund the procurement of crucial US-made military equipment directly from US stocks for Ukraine.

In 2024, the Ukrainian defence industry received more than $1.5 billion from partner countries for the production of weapons for the Ukrainian Armed Forces under the Manufacturing Freedom project.

Nine countries participated in the initiative, Denmark, Canada, the Netherlands, Lithuania, the UK, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and the US, along with the EU.

The states allocated funds from either their own budgets or interest on frozen Russian assets. Additionally, more than $500 million has already been spent on arms contracting through the “Danish model”, under which Denmark and its allies directly fund Ukrainian defense companies to produce weapons and equipment locally, bolstering Ukraine’s defense industry.

The ‘Danish Model’ –

Denmark was the first country to invest in the Ukrainian defense industry to procure arms and equipment for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. In 2024, Copenhagen allocated 400 million euros ($450 million) to the Ukrainian defense industry using frozen Russian assets worth an estimated $300 billion.

With contributions from the EU, the Danish Ukraine Fund, and allies, Denmark allocated approximately 4.4 billion Danish kroner ($663 million) in 2024 to finance procurement from the Ukrainian defense industry, including 18 Bohdana self-propelled howitzers.

In 2025, it expects to more than double this amount. A total of 3 billion Danish kroner ($452 million) has been allocated for the procurement from the Ukrainian defense industry from 2025 to 2027.

“Last year, when I visited Ukraine to meet with several defence industry companies, I was convinced of the prospects for supporting Ukraine directly through procurements in the country’s own defence industry”, Poulsen added. “This way, we ensure that the Ukrainians urgent military needs can be produced and delivered locally. This provides obvious logistical advantages while also contributing to building Ukraine’s defence industry for the future. We are now able to do this on an even larger scale”.

Team Maverick.