WARSAW (AP) 鈥� Five European nations have announced a new program to produce low-cost air defense systems and autonomous drones using hard-won over the past four years of war against Russia.
Friday’s initiative of the E5 nations 鈥� France, Poland, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy 鈥� comes as one of many European efforts to bolster defense along their borders, like a 鈥� 鈥� with Russia and Ukraine to better detect, track and intercept drones violating Europe鈥檚 airspace.
Both Moscow and Kyiv have cutting-edge drone warfare capabilities forged in the grim laboratory of war where battlefield innovations have rewritten modern battle tactics. in joint military training programs and manufacturing projects.
Those efforts were sparked by a in which Europe鈥檚 borders and airports have been tested by rogue drones. Russia has been blamed for some of them but denies that anything was done on purpose or that it played a role.
鈥淭he UK and our E5 partners are stepping up 鈥� investing together in the next generation of air defense and autonomous systems to strengthen NATO鈥檚 shield,” said Luke Pollard, Britain’s minister for defense readiness and industry.
鈥淲e have some of the best kit on the entire planet for shooting down air threats. The problem is to be effective at shooting down relatively low-cost missiles, drones, and other threats facing us,” he said. “We need to make sure that we鈥檙e matching the cost of the threats with the cost of defense.”
Poland’s defense minister, W艂adys艂aw Kosiniak-Kamysz, said the group of countries signed an agreement to jointly invest in the production and procurement of drone-based strike capabilities as well as cheap drone defense systems in a program called called Low-Cost Effectors and Autonomous Platforms, or LEAP.
鈥淐ombat technologies and techniques are changing rapidly 鈥� 鈥嬧�媤e must respond quickly and appropriately,鈥� Kosiniak-Kamysz said. “We also signed a crucial commitment regarding the joint development of drone-based strike capabilities, low-cost joint production, and joint procurement of drone effectors, i.e, combat payloads, using artificial intelligence.”
When Russian drones entered Polish airspace in September 2025, Warsaw and its NATO allies used to respond to drones that cost thousands and that ended up crashing into the Polish countryside. Low-cost kinetic or electronic effectors would allow the detection and destruction of drones at a fraction of the price.
Europe has scrambled to arm itself in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump’s deep criticism of NATO, European defense spending and . The EU has ramped up spending and is openly questioning even deeper military projects.
鈥淓urope’s security is more uncertain than it has been in decades,鈥� said Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, citing Russian aggression, instability in the Middle East, China and a 鈥渞edefined鈥� alliance with the U.S. She said that the low-cost interceptor program exemplifies the European commitment to its own security.
鈥淚f we want to keep our country safe, we must strengthen our hard power. The good news is that we are already investing record sums in defense. Europe is stepping up. but it鈥檚 not about competing with NATO. It鈥檚 about making Europe stronger within NATO. A stronger Europe makes the alliance also stronger.鈥�
Yet the 32-nation military alliance has been shaken by Trump’s second administration. Most recently, his repeated threats to , a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark, and disparaging remarks about his NATO allies鈥� troops in Afghanistan .
While tensions over Greenland for now, the infighting has seriously undercut the ability of the world鈥檚 biggest security alliance to deter adversaries.
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McNeil reported from Brussels.
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