The EU approved €6.1 billion in defense funding for Ukraine, including air defense. Member states also promised additional funds, but without details.
The European Union countries have declared their readiness to provide Ukraine with additional air defense assets amid increased Russian strikes. This was stated by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaia Kallas after an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Wicklow, Ireland, UNN reports with reference to the European External Action Service. The PromPolitInform portal reports.
At the same time, the specific countries, the number of air defense assets and the amount of new assistance are not currently disclosed and should be announced by the countries themselves.
According to Kallas, during the meeting, EU member states announced their intentions to strengthen Ukrainian air defense, which the European side has been urging them to do for a long time.
“It was important for Ukraine to hear that there is real movement on the issue of air defense,” Kallas said.
At the same time, she refused to name the countries that have made new commitments, as well as the number of promised means or interceptor missiles. According to the head of European diplomacy, the relevant states should independently publish their decisions and specific parameters of assistance.
Kallas also emphasized that strengthening Ukrainian air defense remains one of the key areas of support for Ukraine from the European Union. According to her, Moscow has not changed its military goals, and the latest Russian strikes on Ukrainian cities demonstrate the need to further strengthen the country’s defense capabilities.
She also reported that the first 8.47 billion euros have already been transferred to Ukraine under the Ukraine Support Loan mechanism. Another 6.1 billion euros were approved, in particular for air defense needs. At the same time, Kallas made it clear that financing through pan-European mechanisms alone does not cover all of Ukraine’s needs, so bilateral assistance from individual states is also needed.
Earlier, the European Commission reported that the approved 6.1 billion euros of defense funding could be directed, in particular, to air and missile defense systems, missiles, ammunition and radars. The funds are allocated within the framework of the Ukraine Support Loan in a total amount of up to 90 billion euros for 2026–2027, of which 60 billion euros are earmarked for Ukraine’s defense needs.
The day before, on September 1, Kallas also stated that one of the most acute problems for the Ukrainian air defense remains the shortage of interceptor missiles. She called on European countries to review their own stocks, in particular to transfer interceptors to Ukraine, the storage period of which is approaching its end. In parallel, the EU is negotiating with non-EU countries regarding possible supplies of such missiles to Ukraine and is working on developing the production of European interceptors together with the Ukrainian side.
The issue of air defense was discussed in Wicklow for two days in a row. After the meeting of EU defense ministers on September 1, no specific new agreements on the transfer of Patriot missiles were announced. The very next day, after the talks between the heads of foreign ministries, Kallas announced “real movement” and reported that individual countries had made statements regarding the provision of air defense equipment to Ukraine.
