The Dutch, German, Finnish, Swedish, Lithuanian, Estonian, Latvian, Danish and Polish defence ministers called on the EU to show flexibility regarding the equipment that Ukraine may request under the military component of the loan for Ukraine (€60 billion over two years), in a letter dated 2 July and disclosed on Tuesday 7, which they addressed to the High Representative of the Union, Kaja Kallas, and the European Commissioner for Defence, Andrius Kubilius.
These ministers stress that Ukraine has urgent needs – notably PAC-3, AIM-120, ATACMS, ADM-160 MALD and AGM-88 HARM systems – for which there is no EU alternative or which European industries cannot supply in a timely manner. “Ukraine’s urgent needs must be an absolute priority”, they insisted (see EUROPE 13904/4).
According to them, swift approval of the product schedule is therefore crucial, including through the pragmatic use of the derogation for the purchase of materiel produced by third countries, as provided for in the regulation. This derogation has already been used for the first support relating to drones.
To see the letter: https://aeur.eu/f/mr3 (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)