Russia poses threat not only to Ukraine but also to NATO - Czech Foreign Minister
Russia threatens NATO countries (Getty Images)
The real Russian threat exists not only for Ukraine but also for NATO member states. Therefore, Ukraine should receive all the help it needs, according to Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský.
"If you look at the Russian strategy, it is definitely like that. They have plans to build up massive armies. So, in this regard, Ukraine is only one episode in a much, much larger scheme," he says.
According to him, in this context, any assistance to Ukraine makes sense.
"If we stopped supporting Ukraine now and Ukraine would fail, we would as a Europe, as a European community, as a Transatlantic community, we would face Russia just closer. So we need to help Ukraine in any way possible," the minister says.
According to Lipavský, the allies should provide Ukraine with what it needs to support Ukraine in its aspirations to become a member of the EU and NATO, "that's what the Ukrainians are daily fighting for."
"And, of course, it's our immense task to send this help and to procure this help. And again, even if we were not sending it to Ukraine, in a few years, Russia will think of something new, and it will remain a threat to European security. So we need to do it now. It's for the good of Ukraine, for the good of ours, and it will be an immense task.
Reduction of aid to Ukraine
As a reminder, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, the amount of new aid allocated to Ukraine from August to October 2023 decreased sharply: the total value of new packages amounted to only EUR 2.11 billion, the lowest amount since January 2022.
The main remaining group of active donors are individual European countries, such as Croatia, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, as well as NATO countries such as Canada and the United Kingdom.
According to the Pentagon, the United States has about $5.9 billion in military aid to Ukraine. If Congress does not approve the $60 billion package, Washington will not be able to continue to help Kyiv.
