EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Context and Objective
This report analyzes the recent evolution of European Union defense policy in the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and examines the potential implications of this new landscape for the European defense industry and, specifically, for Catalonia’s industrial and technological ecosystem. Its central objective is to identify the extent to which the EU’s strategic pivot toward rearmament, strategic autonomy and the strengthening of the European Defense Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB) can generate concrete opportunities—as well as structural challenges—for the Catalan economy.
Strategic and Institutional Framework
The war in Ukraine has exposed decades of chronic underinvestment in European defense capabilities and a deep structural dependence on the United States. In response, European institutions and member states have launched new financial and industrial instruments—such as the European Defence Industrial Strategy (EDIS), EDIP and ASAP—aimed at scaling up joint procurement, dual-use innovation and industrial readiness across the continent.
Opportunities for Catalonia
Although Catalonia has historically had a limited presence of traditional heavy defense prime contractors, it possesses a highly competitive ecosystem in dual-use technologies—including aerospace, cybersecurity, photonics, supercomputing, advanced materials, robotics and telecommunications—that positions Catalan SMEs and research centers to participate actively in European defense value chains.
