Lisbon, Sept. 24, 2026 (Lusa) - Portugal's National Anti-Corruption Mechanism (MENAC) and similar bodies from four other European countries warned on Thursday, in a joint statement issued by the Portuguese institution, that investment in defence «must not come at the expense of transparency» and integrity.
«This is the first corruption prevention initiative involving defence matters to be undertaken at European Union (EU) level,» MENAC's president, José Mouraz Lopes, told Lusa, emphasising that other countries are welcome to sign the document.
For the time being, the «Joint Declaration on Integrity in Defence Investment» has been signed by MENAC, the Italian National Anti-Corruption Authority, the French Anti-Corruption Agency, the Hungarian Integrity Authority and the Slovenian Commission for the Prevention of Corruption.
Work began around two months ago and, according to Lopes, stemmed from the identification, «based on situations that have occurred in the past», of the risks associated with the «significant financial involvement arising from the European Defence Budget for all countries».
«Safeguarding integrity is not an obstacle to strengthening defence capabilities; it is an essential condition for achieving them. Ensuring that public funds are used efficiently and effectively and in accordance with the highest standards of integrity protects public resources, strengthens citizens' trust and, ultimately, enhances the effectiveness and credibility of defence itself», reads the joint statement released today.
According to Mouraz Lopes, the warning will translate into «concrete initiatives» in each country to prevent situations relating to «public procurement», «conflicts of interest» and «financial irregularities».
In the case of Portugal, the mechanism proposes three measures: the signing of an integrity pact involving joint action by the Ministry of Defence and other public and private institutions involved in the investments; the supervision and monitoring of these initiatives during the implementation period, lasting «around five years», and a «verification process through sectoral general inspectorates», covering «corruption prevention plans, codes of conduct, and training initiatives arising from the General Corruption Prevention Regime».
«We and our colleagues in the European Union, having made this declaration and now set to implement it, are fully aware that public authorities and also the private entities involved in this matter must comply with this,» he emphasised.
In February, the Council of the European Union approved Portugal's plan to access loans totalling €5.8 billion to invest in defence capabilities.
The funds will be made available under the Security Action for Europe Facility (SAFE), proposed in March 2025 by the European Commission, which will provide up to €150 billion in long-term loans on favourable terms to EU member states for investment in defence capabilities.
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