Resilient and secure Europe: advancing security through green and digital transitions

2026-07-22

In a context of increased threats on the European economy, society and infrastructures from various sources -including cyber threats, hybrid threats, and risks linked to climate change-, the CITADEL project aims to enhance innovation, networking, and the adoption of advanced digital technologies within the European security ecosystem. By leveraging cutting-edge solutions such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), photonics, and cybersecurity, CITADEL will strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructures, urban environments, and security operations resulting disasters. CITADEL will provide direct financial support to European SMEs through a cascade funding mechanism, enabling them to network and partners with security end-users, in order to develop and implement innovative security solutions while fostering industrial competitiveness and technological sovereignty, and tackling the challenges brought by the green transition. The CITADEL project consists of two main pillars: - networking and collaboration, which will map existing security solutions, facilitate matchmaking between SMEs, clusters, and security stakeholders, and promote knowledge exchange; - and innovation and adoption, which will support SMEs in integrating advanced digital tools to improve security monitoring, threat detection, crisis response, and resilience, via a dedicated cascade funding mechanisms including monitoring and support. CITADEL is led by a consortium of six specialized European clusters, bringing together expertise in digital technologies and the security value chain. These clusters will ensure the project’s long-term impact by fostering industrial cooperation, supporting continued investments in security innovations, and integrating results into future European initiatives. By leveraging their extensive networks and expertise, the CITADEL consortium will play a key role in strengthening Europe’s security ecosystem and technological sovereignty.

France, Lithuania, Romania, Finland

2026-01-01