Portugal will send another 14 M113 armored vehicles and eight high-capacity electric generators to Ukraine, bringing “the total amount of military equipment, lethal and non-lethal, delivered to the country” to 532 tons, the defense minister announced on Friday .
“Portugal will send a second set to Ukraine 14 M113 armored personnel carriers, eight high-capacity generators to produce electricity, plus 120mm ammunition and two tons of medical and sanitation equipment”reads a statement from the Ministry of Defense, released after a meeting of the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine, which took place this Friday in Ramstein, Germany.
The ministry states that “with this material being prepared for shipment, This brings the total amount of military equipment, lethal and non-lethal, that Portugal has delivered to Ukraine since the beginning of Russia’s aggression to 532 tons.
“During 2022, the Portuguese government, in cooperation with the armed forces, has sent to Ukraine weapons and ammunition, personal protective equipment and communication equipment, armored personnel carriers and unmanned aerial surveillance vehicles, medical and health equipment, and first aid kits for combat,” the ministry indicates .
Regarding the meeting of the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine, the communiqué states that the Defense Minister Helena Carreiras “reaffirmed Portugal’s commitment to the defense of Ukraine’s sovereignty and integrity”.
According to the note, the “Ministry of National Defense and the General Staff of the Armed Forces” are “in constant contact with the Ukrainian authorities and are analyzing Kiev’s requests”, Portugal undertakes to respond to these requests “according to its capabilities and availability”.
“Portugal is part of the new European Union military assistance mission to Ukraine, which will provide training in areas such as defusing explosives, medical assistance in combat, nuclear, biological, chemical and radiological defense, and military instruction in Germany from February,” the statement read.
The ministry also reports that “Portugal remains available to receive 40 Ukrainian soldiers injured in fighting at the Armed Forces Hospital”.
With regard to sending Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, the ministry indicates that at the meeting in Ramstein “Portugal participated in a meeting convened by Ukraine and Poland, where the countries that have these resources were present”.
“At that meeting, the Minister of National Defense reiterated the offer of training in this type of combat vehicles and expressed the availability of the Portuguese government, in consultation with its partners, to find ways to support Ukraine with this capability”says the ministry.
The Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine, made up of Kyiv’s western allies, met today at the US air base in Ramstein, Germany, aimed at increasing military support for that country against Russia.
The meeting was attended by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov, as well as their counterparts from Germany, the UK and Poland, among other top representatives from dozens of countries.
Portugal was represented by the Minister of National Defence.
The Russian military offensive on Ukrainian territory, launched on February 24 last year, plunged Europe into what is considered the most serious security crisis since World War II (1939-1945).
Source: DN
