The head of European diplomacy defended this Monday that the European Union (EU) must quickly decide how to speed up the delivery of arms, especially ammunition, to Ukraine, warning that if this support fails, “the outcome of the war in danger comes”.
Josep Borrell said at the entrance to a meeting of EU foreign ministers that this week, which marks the first anniversary of the start of Russian military aggression against Ukraine, will be marked by discussions in various forums about how the supply of weapons can be accelerated. , namely ammunition to Kiev, as this is undoubtedly “the most pressing issue” at this stage of the war.
“Tomorrow [terça-feira] I am traveling with the minister to NATO [ucraniano] Dmytro Kuleba to speak with the Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, and the topic will be, as today, how to quickly supply Ukraine with weapons, especially ammunition “orphan.
The EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy said it is known that “the most pressing problem for the Ukrainian army today is to have a continuous supply of ammunition, especially 155mm caliber”.
“Russia fires about 50,000 artillery shells a day, and Ukraine needs to be at the same level of capability. They have guns, but they have no ammunition. So we will do everything we can”he said, noting that the continued use of the European Peace Support Mechanism to provide funding will be analysed, but also the joint procurement of arms will be discussed, as well as the possibility for member states to draw on their reserves.
“This is the most urgent issue. If we don’t do this, the outcome of the war will be at stake.”then said.
Josep Borrell pointed out that “this week marks a year of Russian aggression against Ukraine”, and said it will also be an intense week in response to that aggression, because after today’s meeting at the level of the heads of diplomacy of the 27, Tuesday there will be a meeting at the headquarters of the Atlantic Alliance, meetings at the United Nations at the level of the Security Council and the General Assembly, where he hopes that Moscow’s isolation will be strengthened again, and next week the EU defense meeting ministers will have an informal meeting in Stockholm.
Borrell expected that the issue of supplying ammunition to the Ukrainian army would not be decided until Stockholm, as “in the end it is the defense ministers who have to make decisions like this”.
“We will present several proposals and we will see which one is the best. And the best will have to be implemented quickly”insisted.
Regarding the tenth package of sanctions against Russia, the Spanish official noted that “everyone talks about sanctions, everyone wants sanctions, but in the end the Council decides”.
“I do not guarantee that we will have a final agreement today, but we will continue to work on it. Ministers must come to an agreement.”he said.
European Union heads of diplomacy will discuss in Brussels this Monday the continuation of military aid to Kiev and the tenth package of sanctions to Moscow, on the eve of the first anniversary of the beginning of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
At a meeting at which their Ukrainian counterpart will be present, the foreign ministers of the 27 should hear from Dmytro Kuleba the most urgent needs of the Ukrainian armed forces in view of the expected spring offensive that Russia could launch, and would need to concentrate on ammunition problem.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for an acceleration of production of conventional weapons, such as ammunition, which Kiev “desperately needs”, and on the table will again be the possibility of EU member states to switch to joint purchasing.
Estonia, the Baltic country at the forefront of aid to Ukraine, has presented its partners with a quantified proposal: an allocation of €4 billion from member states to the European Peace Facility, the instrument that has been used for nearly a year to purchase and supply of arms to Ukraine.
The 27 will also discuss the 10th package of sanctions against Russia, based on the proposal presented by the Commission last week, which covers critical technologies for the Russian war machine, with a total amount estimated at more than EUR 11 billion, and it also targets on the Kremlin’s “propagandistic machine”.
This package, which the EU plans to adopt this week on the first anniversary of the start of Russian military aggression, which will take place this Friday, February 24, includes industrial goods that Russia needs, such as electronic equipment, specialized vehicles, machinery and engine parts , spare parts for trucks and jet engines.
On the other hand, the list of individuals and entities targeted by restrictive measures should be extended for the first time to cover Iranian entities, including those associated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, as Tehran supplies Russia with drones that have been used to to attack civilians in Ukraine.
During a working lunch, the 27 will also meet Moldova’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and European Integration, Nico Popescu.
Portugal will be represented at the meeting by Minister João Gomes Cravinho.
Source: DN
