EU increases funding for military support for Ukraine, other partners, by 3.5B euro
European Union foreign ministers adopted on June 26 a decision increasing the overall financial ceiling of the European Peace Facility (EPF) by 3.5 billion euro, building on an earlier agreement from 20 March 2023, a statement by the Council of the EU.
“With today’s top-up, the overall financial ceiling now totals more than 12 billion euro (in current prices),” the Council of the EU said.
“This decision sends a clear political signal of the EU’s enduring commitment to military support for Ukraine and other partners alike.”
The EPF was established in March 2021 to finance all common foreign and security policy (CFSP) actions relating to military and defence matters, with the aim of preventing conflict, preserving peace and strengthening international security and stability.
In particular, the EPF allows the EU to finance actions designed to strengthen the capacities of non-EU countries and regional and international organisations in relation to military and defence matters.
Through the EPF, the EU has been supporting the Ukrainian Armed Forces through seven successive support packages so far, as well as many other countries such as Mozambique, Georgia, Moldova, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Somalia, Niger, Mauritania, Lebanon and Jordan.
Arriving for the June 26 meeting of EU foreign ministers, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters: “I think that it is more important than ever to continue supporting Ukraine, because what has happened during this weekend shows that the war against Ukraine is cracking Russian power and affecting its political system.
“We are certainly following closely what is happening, but now is the moment to continue supporting Ukraine more than ever, and that is what we will do,” Borrell said.
“Everybody is aware of what is happening in Russia. It is important to understand that this is cracking Russia’s military power and affecting its political system. And certainly, it is not a good thing to see that a nuclear power like Russia can go into a phase of political instability. It is also something that has to be taken into account,” he said.
Borrell said the most important conclusion from the short-lived mutiny by the Wagner group on June 24 was that “the war against Ukraine launched by Putin, and the monster that Putin created with Wagner, the monster is biting him now.
“The monster is acting against his creator. The political system is showing its fragilities and the military power is cracking. So, this is an important consequence of the war in Ukraine,” he said.
(Photo: Sébastien Bertrand)
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