Iceland to join Czechia's initiative to purchase ammo for Ukraine
Iceland will join Czechia's initiative to purchase ammunition for Ukraine (Photo: facebook com ukroboronprom)
Iceland has decided to support Czechia's initiative to purchase ammunition for the Ukrainian army. The country will allocate approximately 2 million euros for this purpose, according to the government of Iceland.
"Due to the shortage of ammunition, Czechia, in cooperation with Iceland's main partner countries, took the obligation to supply artillery ammunition to Ukraine, which plays a key role in the country's defense," the statement said.
It is noted that at the moment, Iceland's project will spend about two million euros.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Bjarni Benediktsson said that such assistance is in support of international law and also serves to protect their own security interests.
According to him, this decision will have to be approved by parliament. The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs also assured that the country intends to continue moving forward and supporting Ukraine in similar initiatives.
Other assistance Ukraine will receive
Iceland will also support the purchase of equipment for women in the Ukrainian army. The percentage of women in the army has significantly increased in recent years, especially after the start of the Russian invasion.
To meet the needs of female servicemembers, equipment, bulletproof vests, and medical, and hygiene products worth 75 million kroner (half a million euros) are proposed to be provided.
Czechia finds batch of shells for Ukraine
In February, Czechia President Petr Pavlo announced that Prague had found 800,000 artillery shells for the military needs of Ukraine: half a million of caliber 155 mm and 300,000 of caliber 122 mm. However, funds were needed to purchase them.
The initiative was supported by Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Denmark, Canada, and France. In particular, on March 6, Germany provided a three-digit million sum for the purchase of ammunition. Norway also provided over $150 million for ammunition.
At the beginning of March, Pavlo said that allies had already found almost all the necessary funds for the purchase of the announced batch.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Czechia is using contacts from the Cold War era to obtain the necessary ammunition for Ukraine. Prague purchases them from countries that act as allies of Moscow.
