The EU supports increased funding for Ukraine’s defence and will increase funding for the European Peace Fund by €5 billion, the Financial Times reports.
This fund is used to finance military supplies to Ukraine.
The new tranche of the fund is to be approved at a meeting of ambassadors of member states.
It is assumed that priority will be given to the purchase of European-made weapons, although weapons from third countries are not excluded if they are the only option.
The EU has been providing military assistance to Ukraine since 2022 through the European Peace Fund, which reimburses member states for weapons provided to Ukraine.
In particular, the fund allows the EU to finance activities aimed at strengthening the capacity of non-EU countries.
Funding is provided in separate tranches, which can, however, be blocked by individual member states.
In recent months, Hungary has done so, refusing to agree to a €500 million replenishment of the fund under various pretexts.
At the same time, EU countries are negotiating the creation of a four-year special fund under the European Peace Facility totalling €20 billion, which will be used exclusively to help Ukraine.
Earlier, in January, the European Union’s foreign policy department presented a proposal to member states to update the fund that provides military support to Ukraine, as the EU switches from sending weapons from existing stockpiles to purchasing new ones.
A document from the European External Action Service, reported by Bloomberg, lays out the terms of a previously proposed Ukraine Assistance Fund with an annual budget of about 5 billion euros ($5.4 billion), which EU governments have been unable to agree on.
Under the current funding mechanism, known as the European Peace Facility (EPF), member states are reimbursed for weapons they send to Ukraine. The size of the facility has been increased several times, but decisions to allocate and disburse funds require unanimous support, and there is a backlog that will need to be covered.
Source: The Gaze
