EU-UKRAINE Defence Industries Forum Uitnodiging

On behalf of the European External Action Service, the European Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, and the Ministry for Strategic Industries of Ukraine:

We have the pleasure to invite you to register to the EU-Ukraine Defence Industries Forum that will take place on:

Monday, May 6^th, 2024, from 9.00 to 19.00

at The Egg, Rue Bara 175, 1070 Brussels

In line with the initiative launched in September 2023 by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to strengthen the defence potential of Ukraine and of its partners to ensure security in Europe, the Forum will focus on the defence industrial cooperation between Ukraine and the European Union. The Forum is also a deliverable of the European Defence Industrial Strategy presented on 5 March 2024 by the High Representative and the European Commission.

Gathering in-person 300 stakeholders from the Ukrainian and EU defence industries, the Ukrainian government, EU institutions, international organisations and like-minded third countries, as well as EU Member States, the Forum will be a full-day event organised in two parts, allowing for both high-level discussions and business-to-business engagement.

In the morning, the High-Level Conference will provide a privileged platform to discuss the stakes and challenges in the current defence industrial cooperation between the EU and Ukraine.  In a policymaker panel, high-level guests from the European External Action Service, the European Defence Agency, the European Commission, and from the Ukrainian government will discuss how the EU may best support the integration of the Ukrainian defence industry in the European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB).

Two business panels will allow senior representatives from the EU and Ukrainian defence companies to share lessons learnt from their cooperation efforts and possible future opportunities.

In the afternoon, participants will have the opportunity, along with other industry stakeholders from the EU, Norway and Ukraine, to engage in concrete discussions on business and industrial needs and opportunities in a Business-to-Business Networking setting.

Important Information for the Business-to-Business Networking

We will offer different possibilities for industry stakeholders:

1. Available for all: a number of meeting rooms for bilaterals – which can be used freely upon availability or can be reserved for a specific time slot from the start of the networking session (reservations taken at the registration desk).
2. Available for a limited number of companies: a dedicated company table can be reserved to display material (flyers, prospectuses) and to invite counterparts for discussions. The table will remain in the responsibility of the company throughout the whole networking session and requires a permanent presence of at least one representative. Please indicate your request for a company table in the online registration. Depending on the availability, you will receive a confirmation e-mail for the reservation of a table. Companies that will not receive a dedicated company table will receive a reserved timeslot where the meeting room is reserved for their exclusive use.
3. A cocktail reception at the end of the event will give further opportunities for industry to network.

Registration Process

Companies wishing to attend the Forum should fill in the form in the registration link below by 26 April 2024 COB. Attendance will be in-person only.

Participation is limited to 150 industry representatives from the EU and Norway, with a maximum of 3 representatives per company.

To ensure a balance between European and Ukrainian companies, a fair geographical representation among European companies, and taking into account the defence industrial needs identified by the Ukrainian government, the organisers will confirm participation to registered participants.

Please note that registration will be effective upon reception of a confirmation message. Access to the Forum premises will only be possible for participants having received this confirmation message.