EU Council To Allocate $35Mln To Ukraine To Strengthen Defense Capabilities - Kuleba

The Council of the European Union has decided to provide Kiev with 31 million euros ($35 million) to strengthen Ukraine's defense capabilities under the European Peace Facility (EPF), Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Thursday

KIEV (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd December, 2021) The Council of the European Union has decided to provide Kiev with 31 million Euros ($35 million) to strengthen Ukraine's defense capabilities under the European Peace Facility (EPF), Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Thursday.

"Important news from Brussels: EU Council approved decision to provide 31mln for strengthening Ukraine's defense capabilities within the newly established European Peace Facility. We highly appreciate this step which reaffirms the strategic Ukraine-EU relations 1/2," the minister wrote on Twitter.

According to him, Ukrainian diplomacy worked hard and systematically to achieve this result.

"The package will include material and technical assistance for the development and capacity building of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the spheres of medicine, engineering capabilities, demining activities, mobility and logistics, cybersecurity 2/2 #StrongerTogether," Kuleba added.

The EU Council also adopted assistance measures for Georgia, Moldova and Mali to strengthen these countries' military capabilities as part of the EPF.

The EU Council will allocate 34 million euros to Mali over a period of 30 months. The other three countries - Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova - will be provided with the assistance package over 36 months. Georgia will receive 12.75 million euros, while Moldova will receive 7 million euros.

"For Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, the EU also aims to enhance the capacity and interoperability of local armed forces to contribute to Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) military missions and operations. The measures are in response to requests sent to the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy by the countries involved," the EU said in a statement.

In March, the EU established the EPF to finance its external actions relating to military and defense matters with the aim of preventing conflict, promoting peace in the beneficiary countries and strengthening international security and stability.