Sybiha met with Australian Foreign Minister Wong: informed about needs of Ukrainian Armed Forces and requested additional military support
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha met in Kyiv with his Australian counterpart Penny Wong, who made the first bilateral visit to Ukraine by an Australian foreign minister in ten years.
This was reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Censor.NET reports.
It is noted that the parties held detailed talks, the key topic of which was additional support for Ukraine from Australia.
Sybiha expressed deep gratitude to Australia for its military assistance, including the recent provision of 49Abrams tanks and 14 boats. He said that the total amount of Australia's assistance is more than $1 billion, of which $880 million is military aid.
In addition, the Ukrainian minister informed Wong about the urgent needs of the Ukrainian army and requested additional military support, including Australian Bushmaster armored vehicles and other weapons. Sybiha also suggested that Ukraine's needs should be taken into account when decommissioning military equipment in service with the Australian Defense Force.
The ministers also paid considerable attention to the threats posed by deepening cooperation between Russia and North Korea. Sybiha emphasized the need to increase pressure on Russia and raise the cost of war for the Kremlin.
Sybiha also welcomed Australia's decision to transfer 50 million euros to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, as well as to contribute 6.39 million US dollars to the Energy Support Fund for Ukraine.
The foreign minister reportedly invited the Australian side to take part in the Conference on Ukraine's recovery in Italy next year.
"The ministers agreed to resume the full-fledged work of the Australian Embassy in Ukraine. Andrii Sybiha expressed confidence that this step will further strengthen bilateral cooperation between the two countries," the Foreign Ministry added.
As a reminder, today, December 18, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong arrived in Kyiv on a visit.
