With €16.6 billion earmarked, Romania is the second-largest beneficiary of SAFE after Poland, which requested around €43.7 billion, and ranks ahead of France, Hungary and Italy. Romanian authorities divided the allocation into three parts: €9.6 billion for defence modernisation projects managed by the Ministry of Defence, €2.8 billion for equipment for the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other public services, and €4.2 billion for strategic sections of the A7 and A8 motorways in the country’s north-east, improving links towards Ukraine and Moldova.
The Ministry of Defence has prepared a list of 21 projects covering both national purchases and joint EU procurements, with the largest single item being 198 tracked infantry fighting vehicles valued at €2.98 billion. Other major planned acquisitions include Airbus H225M Caracal multirole helicopters procured jointly with France, Piranha 5 armoured vehicles, offshore patrol vessels, Mistral and IRIS-T SLM air defence systems, Thales GM200 radars, Naval Strike Missiles, V-SHORAD systems, logistics vehicles, loitering munitions and large quantities of programmable 35 mm AHEAD ammunition.
Additional defence purchases below €100 million include small arms, simulation systems, reconnaissance drones, C4ISR software and multiple short-range air defence systems for naval and land forces. The Ministry of Internal Affairs is also planning substantial investments under SAFE, including helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft, rescue boats, drones, robotic systems, hundreds of vehicles and a dedicated medical evacuation train, with officials noting that around €900 million will be devoted to civil protection, making Romania one of the few countries to commit such significant resources to population safety.
