Creation of €20 billion special fund for military aid to Ukraine will take place after details are worked out at level of EU member states - Stano
Brussels expects to quickly agree on the final details of a fund for military assistance to Ukraine under the European Peace Fund, which was approved by the European Council at its February 1 summit.
This was stated by EU spokesperson Peter Stano, Censor.NET reports with reference to Ukrinform.
"A special fund (military - ed.) for Ukraine under the European Peace Fund has already been agreed by the European Council, and now it has to be worked out in detail at the level of member states, during a time that we hope will not be long. So I can only repeat the words of the EU High Representative that we hope, from here in Brussels, that this discussion will be finalized within the next few days, which means as soon as possible," Stano emphasized.
He noted that, of course, the European Union is well aware of the needs of the Ukrainian side when it comes to military supplies. Such assistance for Ukraine was discussed at various levels at least three times last week: during an informal meeting of defense ministers, during the European Council at the level of European leaders, and during an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers last Saturday.
"The conclusions of the European Council on Thursday were very clear in terms of Europe's intention to continue supporting Ukraine. The results of the informal meetings of defense ministers and foreign ministers only confirmed that, yes, the European Union will continue to support Ukraine not only for as long as necessary, but also with whatever is needed. A support fund of 50 billion euros has already been agreed by the member states," the EU spokesman added.
As reported, during the European Council on February 1, as well as during informal meetings of European defense and foreign affairs ministers last week, EU countries considered the proposal of the EU High Representative to create a special fund for military assistance to Ukraine within the framework of the intergovernmental European Peace Fund, in the amount of 20 billion euros for the next four years (2024-2027), or 5 billion euros per year. These funds are expected to be used not only to compensate member states for direct military supplies to Ukraine but also to invest in increasing the capacity of the European defense industry, including the production of weapons and ammunition for Ukraine.
