Research paper on the implementation of Directive 2009/81/EC, concerning procurement in the fields of defence and security, and of Directive 2009/43/EC, concerning the transfer of defence-related products

This study examines the implementation of the European Union (EU) defence package, which consists of the Defence Procurement Directive 2009/81/EC and the Intra-Community Transfers Directive 2009/43/EC, during the period from 2016 to 2020. It is organised in two parts. The first part of the study, prepared internally, examines the evaluations carried out on the implementation of the two directives to identify persisting challenges. It surveys institutional and policy novelties in the field of EU defence cooperation so as to place the implementation of the two directives in context, and then examines Parliament's oversight work. It goes on to lay out the main elements that are likely to affect the future of EU defence industrial cooperation, and provides options for moving forward. The second part of the study, which was outsourced, is based on primary research (a survey and interviews) and aims to assess the effectiveness, efficiency, relevance and added value of the Defence Procurement Directive and the Intra-Community Transfers Directive. It also seeks to identify limitations and challenges, and explore – where possible – the links between the implementation of the two directives.