The head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, proposed to allocate five billion euros a year to Ukraine from the European Peace Fund for military assistance over the next four years.
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“We proposed to create a separate item in the European Peace Fund to provide up to five billion euros per year for the next four years for the defense needs of Ukraine,” Borrell said following a regular meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Thursday.
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According to him, this will indicate a long-term security commitment to Ukraine. Borrell added that this issue will be discussed in detail at an informal EU ministerial meeting in Spain.
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The extrabudgetary European Peace Facility (EPF) was created by the EU in March 2021 to increase the ability to prevent conflicts and strengthen international security. The fund was calculated within the framework of about 5.7 billion euros for the period 2021-2027.
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Last year, the EU countries decided to pay compensation from this fund to the EU states that provide military assistance to Ukraine. This resulted in the fund being depleted ahead of schedule and having to be replenished periodically. The issue of allocating an additional 3.5 billion euros to finance the fund is currently being considered.
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As the head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, said earlier, Brussels’ support for Ukraine should continue after the end of the conflict. He suggested that the European Peace Fund, from which the EU provides assistance to partners in different countries of the world, could turn into a “Defense Fund of Ukraine.” Borrell added that it is necessary to continue efforts to modernize the Ukrainian army and train its military personnel.
