Ukraine and the EU have taken the first step towards a Drone Deal - Zelenskyy and von der Leyen signed a letter of intent
Kyiv • UNN
The President of Ukraine and the President of the European Commission signed a Letter of Intent on defense-industrial partnership. The EU allocated an additional 1 billion euros for drones within the framework of a 90 billion euro loan.
In Kyiv, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a meeting with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, during which the leaders signed a document that became the first step towards the Drone Deal, UNN reports, citing the OP.
Details
The head of state thanked Ursula von der Leyen and all European partners for their support of Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale war. The President separately noted the record financial, political, and defense assistance to Ukraine from the European Union.
"This is also our Ukrainian and European determination to go all the way to Ukraine's full membership in the European Union. Today in Europe, everyone agrees – we deserve to be a full member of the EU," Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized.
The leaders discussed in detail the work on opening four more negotiation clusters and the need to approve the 21st package of EU sanctions. According to Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission will support the process of opening the next negotiation clusters for Ukraine.
"I am confident that thanks to joint pressure, thanks to our cooperation with Europe, with America, thanks to our people, we will definitely achieve peace. And we will be together in peace, together in a united, strong Europe," the Head of State said.
Special attention was paid to defense cooperation and the preparation of the Drone Deal. The Presidents signed a Letter of Intent on strategic defense-industrial partnership between Ukraine and the European Commission.
"Today there is also the first document at the core of the Drone Deal – a major defense agreement between Ukraine and the European Union – this is a historic step in our relations. Next, we expect financial support from the EU for our anti-ballistic program, which we launched the day before yesterday in France," the President of Ukraine noted.
Ursula von der Leyen noted that Ukraine and the European Union will strengthen defense cooperation, which, in particular, will make it possible to increase drone production.
"We are not only developing a new generation of drone systems together, but we will also produce them faster than ever before, so that Ukraine gets everything it needs now, and Europe has all the capabilities it will need tomorrow," the President of the European Commission emphasized.
She announced the allocation of another 1 billion euros within the framework of the EU loan of 90 billion euros for drone production. Earlier, 4 billion euros had already been allocated from this package for the relevant drone direction.
Zelenskyy and von der Leyen also discussed Ukraine's preparation for winter, where the energy sector remains an unwavering priority. The President of the European Commission emphasized that the EC will continue to support Ukraine's energy sector and strengthen its infrastructure.
Reminder
On July 13, Ukraine and nine other European countries signed a declaration on the creation of the Anti-Ballistic Coalition and the implementation of the FREYJA project. The Ukrainian company Fire Point is involved in the development of the system.
Co-founder and chief designer of Fire Point, Denys Shtilerman, said that the company is ready to transfer technologies and open weapons production on the territory of partner countries. This step will allow accelerating the full launch of the anti-ballistic shield.