The negotiations between the EU states had dragged on – among other things because of demands from Germany and France. The countries have now agreed on military aid worth five billion euros.
After months of negotiations, EU countries have agreed to continue joint financing of military equipment for Ukraine. According to the current Belgian EU Council Presidency and diplomats, weapons, ammunition and other goods worth at least five billion euros are to be delivered.
Specifically, it is planned to provide the European Peace Facility (EFF) with additional funds. This financing instrument can be used to reimburse EU member states for military support to Ukraine attacked by Russia and to pay for joint orders.
Scholz called for bilateral aid to be taken into account
The negotiations were particularly difficult because of demands from Germany and France. Germany, as the largest economy, finances the EFF by 25 percent. The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell had originally called for a commitment of 20 billion euros by 2027. That would have meant a new contribution of five billion euros for the federal government. However, in view of tight budgets, Chancellor Olaf Scholz urged that bilateral German military aid to Ukraine worth more than seven billion euros be taken into account this year alone. According to diplomats, this is now fundamentally possible.
France had also demanded that the pot only be used to finance weapons made in Europe. Other countries consider this unrealistic. As a compromise, according to information from Brussels, weapons from European defense companies should now have priority. When capacity is exhausted, purchases are possible in third countries such as the USA or South Korea.
The agreement should be formally sealed on Monday
The German EU ambassador Michael Clauß described the agreement in the evening as “good news for Ukraine”. It enables the particularly quick and unbureaucratic bilateral delivery of military goods as part of the EU support for Ukraine, he said. The EU foreign ministers are expected to formally seal the agreement in Brussels on Monday.