12 Feb 2026
EC presents action plan to counter drone threats
The European Commission presented its Action Plan to counter the increasing threats posed by drones to EU security on 11 February 2026. In recent years, the EU has faced growing and multi-faceted challenges relating to drones and meteorological balloons, including hostile overflights, airspace violations, disruptions to airports, as well as risks to our critical infrastructure, external borders and public spaces.
The Action Plan represents an ambitious blueprint for stronger EU cooperation and solidarity, responding to the calls from EU Member States and the European Parliament for a united EU approach against threats posed by malicious drones. It focuses on the civilian internal security dimension, while complementing and supporting the work carried out in the defence domain by the Commission, and reinforcing civil-military synergies. In addition, the Action Plan contributes to the development of a competitive European drone market, unlocking the potential for innovation, growth and job creation across this important sector.
The Action Plan is designed to support Member States through coordinated actions, complementing national measures and focused on key priorities: enhancing preparedness, boosting detection capacities, coordinating responses and strengthening the EU's defence readiness.
Amongst numerous other issues, the Action Plan proposes measures to develop the innovation potential in this sector. Under the heading of enhancing Europe's preparedness and resilience against drone incidents, the Action Plan proposes a new approach to technological development and rapid industrial production ramp-up, including:
- A coordinated civil-military industrial mapping to attract investment and foster innovation & interoperability;
- A strengthened counter-drone testing capacity thanks to a new EU Counter-Drone Centre of Excellence and the development of a certification scheme for counter drone systems; and
- The launch of a Drone and Counter-drone Industry Forum to foster dialogue with industrial actors, with view to scaling up production.
The counter-drone Living Lab of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) will be upgraded into a fully-fledged EU counter-drone centre of excellence. The Centre will work in synergy with the EU Civil-Defence Drone Testing Centre Network which is currently in its pilot implementation phase in cooperation with the European Defence Agency. It will run – on a regular basis and whenever necessary – a large testing and validation programme of counter-drone measures, starting with the first edition focused on the protection of critical infrastructure.
The Action Plan states that EU funding programmes will support the technological development of drones and counter-drone capacities, explicitly mentioning Horizon Europe and the European Defence Fund.
As next steps, the Commission will launch discussions with Member States on the proposed actions and key priorities, based on the principle of co-ownership. It will also work very closely with other actors, including industry and the European Parliament. The EC states that the Action Plan should be seen as a dynamic process, to be adapted according to the evolution and nature of threats. To coordinate implementation, the Commission will consider setting up with Member States a strategic mechanism connecting the different dimensions, and ensuring close cooperation with the Council. The Commission also proposes that Member States appoint National Drone Security Coordinators, which will foster and oversee the national implementation of these actions.
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