Slovakia Provided $182Mln In Military Equipment To Kiev, Sold For Another $159Mln -Reports

PRAGUE (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 11th January, 2023) Slovakia has provided Ukraine with 170 million Euros ($182.49 million) in military equipment free of charge and has signed contracts with Kiev for the delivery of similar equipment for another 148 million euros, local media reported on Tuesday.

According to Slovak newspaper Pravda, Bratislava's delivery of S-300 air defense systems worth some 100 million euros to Kiev was among the first to be transferred to Ukraine. Moreover, deliveries of some equipment were financed by other NATO member states, the report said.

The newspaper has listed in great detail the types and quantity of military equipment supplied from Slovakia to Ukraine. The list includes 16 Zuzana 2 self-propelled howitzers under a 92 million euros contract, financed by Denmark, Germany, and Norway, 4 Bozena mine clearance systems, 30 infantry fighting vehicles worth about 20 million euros, and unspecified quantities of shells, aviation fuel, gasoline, small arms, and other military equipment.

"Our assistance to Ukraine corresponds to our capabilities of the small country. But it should be noted that our brave transfer of the S-300 system to Kiev at the very beginning of the military conflict in Ukraine set an example for other countries, which until then were afraid to transfer sophisticated military systems to Ukrainians," Lt. Gen. Pavel Macko, the former deputy chief of the general staff of the Slovak army, has told the media.

Since Russia launched its military operation in Ukraine on February 24, Western countries have been providing Kiev with humanitarian, military, and financial aid. Moscow has denounced the flow of weapons to Ukraine from its Western allies, saying it adds fuel to the fire. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov repeatedly noted that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine would become a legitimate target for Russia.