EU leaders to urge faster missile deliveries to Ukraine at summit, Reuters
Illustrative photo (Photo: Getty Images)
The leaders of the European Union at the summit on February 1 will confirm their determination to continue providing "timely, predictable, and sustainable military support" to Ukraine, reports Reuters.
"The European Council also reiterates the urgent need to accelerate the delivery of ammunition and missiles," the summit's draft text, as seen by the agency, states.
The draft leaves open the question of whether the leaders will also promise an additional 5 billion euros in aid to Ukraine to the European Peace Fund, which has been used to finance arms supplies to Kyiv.
EU members have been debating the future role of the fund in military aid to Ukraine for several months, with Germany proposing to focus on bilateral assistance from individual EU countries.
The idea of allocating an additional 5 billion euros is included in the draft text in square brackets, indicating that it is still a subject of discussion, the agency notes.
The main theme of the summit in Brussels will be an attempt to reach an agreement on a financial assistance package of 50 billion euros to Ukraine over four years, which was blocked by Hungary at the previous summit in December.
Missiles for Ukraine
Ukraine asked Germany for long-range Taurus missiles capable of destroying targets at a distance of up to 500 km last year. However, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is against the idea.
At the same time, the German company Taurus Systems GmbH is ready to quickly replenish Germany's stocks of long-range missiles in case of their supply to Ukraine.
In addition, France will supply Ukraine with 40 new long-range SCALP missiles and bombs, the quantity of which is not specified.
