Greece on Monday was among the latest batch of EU member-states approved for funding under the Union’s Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative to boost European defense capability and production.

The country was part of the group that included Estonia, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Finland.

The development comes nearly two weeks after the Commission submitted a proposal to the Council to approve financial assistance for Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Portugal and Romania – the first batch of EU states greenlighted for the financing tool.

Cyprus was among the first eight EU member-states that will receive funding to boost their defense and security structure, part of the EU Commission much-vaunted Security Action for Europe, or SAFE initiative.

According to a press release on Monday “…this decision follows a rigorous assessment of the countries’ “National Defence Investment Plans” under the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) initiative. The Commission is opening the door for the first wave of low-cost, long-term loans to be released, allowing these nations to urgently scale up their military readiness and acquire needed modern defence equipment. The framework also deepens Ukraine’s integration into the EU’s security ecosystem, ensuring that European support remains both agile and sustainable.”