The European Union is preparing to provide Ukraine with its strongest support since the beginning of the full-scale war, amid expectations of a difficult winter. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced this on September 16 during her traditional annual address, UNN reports.
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Our task remains unchanged — to support Ukraine as strongly as we can
The President of the European Commission emphasized that, first and foremost, the EU, together with its partners, would provide humanitarian aid to Ukraine and work to strengthen the supply of electricity and heat.
Another area will be strengthening Ukraine’s air defense. Von der Leyen reported that last week, the purchase of American Patriot interceptor missiles was approved for the first time. Now, she said, they need to be delivered to Ukraine as quickly as possible.
At the same time, the EU seeks to reduce its dependence on a single supplier of air and missile defense systems. To this end, the European Union plans to develop an affordable modular missile defense system jointly with Ukraine.
In addition, according to von der Leyen, the funds remaining under the SAFE program are planned to be directed toward creating a new program of joint projects with Ukrainian companies.
The President of the European Commission also named increasing pressure on russia as another area of support for Ukraine. At the same time, she noted that the EU does not necessarily need new sanctions, and that one of the key tasks should be the effective enforcement of the restrictions already in place and closing opportunities to circumvent them. According to von der Leyen, russia is trying to circumvent the sanctions restrictions, so the European Union should focus on eliminating the relevant loopholes.
We remind you
At the beginning of June 2026, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the EU to quickly use the €6 billion that had been unlocked and prepare a winter aid package.