Context · DG DEFIS · EU
First ENDR Newcomers' Day: 13 new members join EU defence regions network
DG DEFIS — Defence Industry & Space (EC) · published 30 Jun 2026 · · Source ↗
Deadline—
Budget / value—
Statusunknown
Why it matters
ENDR membership and its regional clusters are a low-cost route into regional dual-use funding channels and partner-finding for EDF/EDIP consortia; relevant to newcomers and SMEs lacking defence networks.
Do this: If you are a regional cluster or dual-use ecosystem, contact DG DEFIS Unit B.1 about ENDR membership and the call to co-organise a 2026/27 ENDR conference.
Route: watch only · For: Industrial firms entering defenceEstablished SME suppliers & subsystem makersBid & funding consultancies
Summary
DG DEFIS reported on the first online ENDR (European Network of Defence-related Regions) Newcomers' Day held on 25 June 2026, where 13 new members — regional clusters, agencies and research bodies from DE, GR, FI, NO, FR, ES, NL, IT — introduced themselves. The ENDR team announced a call for proposals for co-organising future ENDR conferences, to be published by end of June 2026. The JRC also presented the REGDUALOSA study on how regional innovation policy can leverage dual-use and defence industry. As of 25 June 2026 the network has 122 entities from 23 Member States and Norway.
Eligibility
Regions, regional clusters and related entities from EU Member States and Norway
Source text (raw, may be non-English)
On 25/6/2026, the first online event “ENDR Newcomers' Day” took place, where 13 new members joining ENDR during the last months presented themselves. On 25/6/2026, the first online event “ENDR Newcomers' Day” took place, where 13 new members joining ENDR during the last months presented themselves. These included the Central German Institute for Security Industry (MISI), the Foundation for Research and Technology - Hellas (GR), the Turku Security Dual-Use Ecosystem (FI), the Agder European Office (NO), the European DeepTech Ecosystem AKTANTIS (FR), the Andalusia Defense Hub (ES), Impuls Zeeland (NL), the Italian Trade Agency ITA, the Cluster Defence.NRW (DE), the Province of South Holland, the Regional Council of Central Finland, the Grand-Est Chamber of Industry and Commerce (FR) and the Cluster Aviaspace Bremen (DE). After those presentations, the ENDR Team has presented the call for proposals for future ENDR Conferences that will be published by the end of June 2026 and explained the procedure to express interest in the co-organisations of those events. Another highlight of the day was the presentation of the REGDUALOSA study by the Joint Research Center (JRC) of the European Commission. REGDUALOSA is an Exploratory Research Activity aiming to understand how regional innovation policies can leverage the dual-use and defence industry, fostering development while contributing to the EU's Open Strategic Autonomy. The study was drawn up with the participation of three regions represented in the ENDR and contains concrete recommendations to the regions on how to benefit from the high demand for arms investments for long-term regional growth. The study is here. The ENDR is managed by Unit B.1. As of 25 June 2026, 122 entities from 23 Member States and Norway are members of the network. More conferences and events are taking place in 2026. Feedback confirmed the event’s high value as a platform for networking, exchanging best practices and collaboration among regions and regional clusters in the area of security and defence industry. Publication date 30 June 2026 Author Directorate-General for Defence Industry and Space
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