80% of the EU's 2 million artillery shell initiative for Ukraine has already been committed - Kallas
Kyiv • UNN
Head of EU diplomacy Kaja Kallas announced that 80% of the European Union's initiative to provide Ukraine with two million artillery shells this year has already been secured by commitments. This initiative involves allocating 5 billion euros for the stated goal.
Already 80% of the EU High Representative's initiative on ammunition for Ukraine, which proposed allocating 5 billion euros for 2 million artillery shells this year, has been secured, said EU chief diplomat Kaja Kallas on Monday, arriving at the EU Foreign Affairs Council, writes UNN.
I am glad to inform you that 80% of the ammunition initiative (for Ukraine - ed.) has already been committed. But, of course, we must do more to implement the 2 million shells initiative this year
She indicated that one of the discussion topics today is Ukraine.
"We are discussing Ukraine. While all eyes are on what is happening in Iran and the Middle East, people are dying in Kyiv because Russia is bombing Ukraine every day. Therefore, we must continue to pressure Russia. Therefore, we are promoting the 18th package of sanctions. We must also provide military support to Ukraine," Kallas said.
Supplement
On March 17, EU chief diplomat Kaja Kallas said that the EU is discussing details of new aid for Ukraine up to 40 billion euros.
On March 20, Kaja Kallas stated before a special bloc summit that if the EU cannot decide right now on aid to Ukraine for the entire next year, against the backdrop of a proposal for aid up to 40 billion euros, then work is currently underway on a 5 billion euro plan for ammunition for Ukraine, which she called "realistic."
On March 20, at the EU summit, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine needs funds for artillery shells, and Kyiv would be grateful for European support of at least 5 billion euros in the shortest possible time.
At the same time, Bloomberg reported that discussions in Brussels at the March 20 summit showed that allocating 5 billion euros for the purchase of 2 million artillery shells would be a difficult task. And that the efforts of EU leaders to provide 5 billion euros to secure ammunition for Ukraine this year were delayed by France and Italy.
The European Commission recently indicated that Ukraine's request for 2 million artillery shells is the focus of their work, and this is what the European Commission is concentrating on in terms of "next concrete steps and results."