President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy commented on the signing of a security agreement between Ukraine and Belgium, which provides for the provision of 1 billion euros in military aid and 30 F-16 aircraft, noting that this marked the beginning of a new page in relations between the states, which is important for the stability and security of the whole of Europe, UNN reports .
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Today we have started a new page in the relations between our countries, between Ukraine and Belgium, and this is important for the stability and security of the whole of Europe. Mr. Prime Minister, I am grateful for the ambitious and meaningful security agreement between our countries. And right now, when Russia is trying to expand and prolong the war, we need as many concrete steps as possible to bring peace closer. First, we have a clear record of the supply of combat aircraft to Ukraine. We have fixed in the agreement the number of F-16s that Ukraine can receive from Belgium. This is 30 aircraft, and our task is to deploy the first F-16s this year. Second, our security agreement is valid for 10 years. For this year, we have fixed the level of financial support for our defense from Belgium at almost 1 billion euros
He noted that the agreement will provide for cooperation between the countries in the development of the defense industry.
Now Russia is trying to bring even more ruins to Ukraine and kill even more people (...) Putin has only one tool of influence - the destruction of life. He does not know how to do anything else and, to be honest, he does not want to do anything else. That is why the key is to have enough weapons to physically defend ourselves against Russia's terror. Today we discussed that this year Ukraine can receive 1.7 billion euros from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets and there are also solutions for reconstruction. Belgium will allocate funds for the restoration of our Chernihiv region. We are working to open an office of the Belgian Development Agency in Ukraine
Recall
Ukraine and Belgium signed a bilateral agreement on security cooperation and long-term support, under which Belgium pledged to provide Ukraine with at least €977 million in military aid and 30 F-16 fighter jets by 2028.