Wallace calls on British Defense Secretary to speed up provision of military assistance to Ukraine
Former UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has warned his successor, Grant Shapps, that the UK risks "falling behind" in its military support for Ukraine, as ministers have yet to announce a military aid budget for 2024-2025.
This was reported by Censor.NET with reference to The Guardian.
The article says that the former minister told parliament that he had formally requested between £2.3 billion - the current annual level - and £2.6 billion in funding for Ukraine in June before he left the government, but there has been no announcement made since then.
"The planners at the Ministry of Defense need time, as do the Ukrainians, to adjust. If we don't start making this announcement soon, we will fall behind many of our European colleagues who have already overtaken us with their support," The Guardian quoted Wallace as saying.
The current UK Secretary of Defense Grant Shapps refused to give an exact figure for the amount of military aid, but assured that Wallace "will not be disappointed and he will not have to wait too long."
Labour's shadow defense secretary, John Healey, also raised the issue, noting that "current funding for UK military aid is running out in a matter of weeks." He said he had publicly requested new funds in November.
Shepps emphasized that the commitments to Kyiv are calculated until April and are not in danger of expiring.
For two years in a row, the UK has been providing military assistance to Ukraine in the amount of 2.3 billion pounds. However, while this year's funding was announced six months in advance, the budget for next year has not yet been approved.
And British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that the UK plans to keep aid to Ukraine at the same level in 2024.
