Strategy and Tools

The Defence R&D&I Policy pursues two fundamental objectives:

• To contribute to the development of military capabilities, providing advanced technological solutions that help deliver operational advantage in their use.
• To contribute to strengthening the national industrial and technological base, ensuring it possesses the essential capabilities required for defence and enabling freedom of action in the employment of military capabilities.

These objectives define the core Mission of defence R&D&I, with which the specific objectives established in this Strategy, as well as the plans and programmes developed for its implementation, must align.

The Vision focuses on enabling a defence R&D&I system capable of leveraging both the Ministry’s own capabilities and resources and the external opportunities accessible through national and international cooperation. It must be able to operate across the full spectrum of technological areas relevant to the missions of the Armed Forces and at different levels of technological maturity, so that results can be integrated into the acquisition processes of future weapon systems and so that the national BITD can provide a sustained response to current technological needs as well as to the challenges that the future may bring.

The Department relies on the Technology and Innovation Strategy for Defence (ETID), together with a set of instruments, supporting the execution of R&D&I projects, national and international cooperation, and the dissemination of technological information, which collectively enable the mission and vision of the Defence R&D&I Policy to be translated into actionable initiatives.