EU is discussing increasing aid to Ukraine and strengthening Europe’s defence capabilities - Pistorius
A meeting of the EU Council at the level of defence ministers is taking place in Brussels, with the main topics being further assistance to Ukraine and strengthening Europe's defence capabilities.
This was announced by German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius before the meeting, Censor.NET reports citing the "EP".
According to him, given recent events, supporting Ukraine is a priority. "I am deeply convinced that it is even more important than ever to provide Ukraine with sustainable and active support. Today we will discuss what concrete steps we will take and - this will be the second part of the discussion - how we can strengthen European defence capabilities," the minister said.
A key point of the consultations is the initiative of the EU High Representative to provide Ukraine with 2 million artillery shells in 2024. Pistorius confirmed that Germany would play a significant role in this.
The second part of the meeting focused on strengthening European defence capabilities. Pistorius called on EU member states to move towards joint needs assessment and coordination: "Only then can we truly organise training, maintenance, ammunition production and logistics together. And everyone knows that if you pool resources and make decisions together, you can do more for the same money than if you are on your own."
He also suggested that member states should be responsible for specific areas according to their expertise. Germany, for its part, is ready to focus not only on air defence, but also on land and sea systems.
