Kallas: providing Ukraine with 2 million shells this year is an EU priority, plans were clarified today
Kyiv • UNN
EU defense ministers discussed plans in Warsaw to provide Ukraine with 2 million artillery ammunition this year. This is a priority and a real task for European allies.
Today's discussions of the EU defense ministers in Warsaw helped to clarify the bloc's plans to provide Ukraine with 2 million artillery shells this year, which is a priority and is realistic and achievable together with European allies. This was stated by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, following an informal meeting of EU defense ministers as part of an informal meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council on Thursday, UNN writes.
On the part of the EU, we prioritize providing Ukraine with 2 million artillery shells this year, as requested by President Zelenskyy. This is both realistic and achievable. We can do this together with all European allies. And today's discussions helped to clarify our plans
According to her, the ministers "also discussed how the EU can support security guarantees for Ukraine together with a "coalition of the willing".
We remind
On March 17, EU Foreign Minister Kaja Kallas announced that the EU is discussing the details of new aid for Ukraine at the level of up to EUR 40 billion.
On March 20, Kaya Kallas stated before a special summit of the bloc that if the EU cannot decide right now on aid to Ukraine for the entire next year, against the background of the proposal for aid of up to EUR 40 billion, then work is underway right now on a plan for EUR 5 billion for ammunition for Ukraine, which she called "realistic".
On March 20, at the EU summit, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine needs funds for artillery shells, and Kyiv would be grateful for European support in the amount of at least 5 billion euros as soon as possible.
At the same time, Bloomberg reported that discussions in Brussels at the March 20 summit showed that allocating EUR 5 billion for the purchase of 2 million artillery shells would not be an easy task. And that the efforts of EU leaders to provide EUR 5 billion to ensure ammunition for Ukraine this year were delayed by France and Italy.
The European Commission recently pointed out that Ukraine's request for 2 million artillery shells is the focus of their work, and this is what the European Commission is focused on in terms of "next concrete steps and results".
The defense ministers of the EU member states were to discuss Kallas' initiative to strengthen support for Ukraine by the EU against the background of her proposal to allocate EUR 5 billion for artillery shells for Ukraine at an informal meeting in the capital of the EU presiding country Poland on April 2-3.