Yesterday at 19:57
Leaders of 5 European countries, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Danish PM Mette Frederiksen, Czech Republic PM Petr Fiala, Estonian PM Kaja Kallas and the Netherlands’ PM Mark Rutte have issued a joint letter urging the EU to put more effort into long-term support to Ukraine.
The letter was published by Financial Times on January 31.
“We call on friends and partners of Ukraine to recommit to sustainable long-term military support for Ukraine as a joint European responsibility. This decision must be taken by every country. Only then will Ukraine be able to succeed in its defense against Russian aggression,” said the European officials in their statement.
“At the beginning of last year, the EU committed itself to an ambitious goal of supplying Ukraine with 1mn artillery rounds before the end of March 2024. The hard truth: we have fallen short of this goal,” the letter explains how the EU has already failed Ukraine.
Hence, the leaders claim it is crucial to provide the ammunition and weapon systems, including howitzers, tanks, UAVs and air defence “now, because new orders we place today will only reach the battlefield by next year” to make up for lost time.
The signatories remind that Ukraine’s defeat would be a defeat for the entire Europe.
“Russia doesn’t wait for anybody and we need to act now. If Ukraine loses, the long-term consequences and costs will be much higher for all of us. We Europeans have a special responsibility. Therefore, we must act. Europe’s future depends on it,”
The statement emerges ahead of a special EU summit which is to take place tomorrow, on February 1 and related discussions about Hungary’s role in adopting an aid package for Ukraine.
Earlier, in an interview with Die Zeit, Scholz urged Europe to increase volumes of weapons supplied to Ukraine due to the US Congress dealing with migration issue. He pointed out that Germany was already “doing more than all other EU countries”
Read also: Russia uses nationalist sentiments in Europe to set Ukraine and its neighbors at odds — ISW
