BRUSSELS, April 18 () –
The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, called on the bloc's countries this Thursday to mobilize the six Patriot-type anti-aircraft batteries requested by Ukraine to reinforce its defenses, insisting that “concrete decisions” are needed in the next few days to protect Ukrainian infrastructure.
“We have to make faster decisions to help Ukraine more. We cannot allow Vladimir Putin's victory. They need weapons and we have to supply them,” he said in statements from the meeting of G7 foreign ministers, gathered in Italy.
In this sense, he explained that aid to Ukraine does not have to depend only on the United States, the country that has the most anti-missile batteries of this type, but that European partners must take a step forward. “We have Patriots and other anti-missile systems, we have to take them out of the barracks and send them to where a war is being fought,” he stressed.
In this way, the growing voices in the EU have been echoed so that countries that have this type of systems, such as the Netherlands, Romania, Germany or Spain, mobilize them to reinforce Ukraine's anti-aircraft defenses. kyiv's request reached the extraordinary summit of leaders in Brussels with the help of President Volodymyr Zelensky, who in his speech by videoconference insisted on the damage that Russia is inflicting on thermal and hydroelectric plants.
“This can only be stopped with anti-aircraft defense,” said the Ukrainian leader, specifically mentioning the Patriot, IRIS-T or NASAMS systems. “Systems that you have. They are necessary in Ukraine right now to prevent Putin from resorting to terrorist methods,” he said in front of the leaders of the 27.
kyiv specifically requests 6 of these systems, as stated by the Prime Minister of Estonia, Kaja Kallas, who has confessed that during the first day of the summit, special attention was paid to the countries of the bloc that have more robust anti-aircraft defenses. “There is more pressure for these countries. They basically ask for six Patriots and we know where they are in Europe. These countries do not need it as much as Ukraine needs it now,” she noted.
Her Latvian counterpart, Evika Silina, shares that the situation is “crucial” in Ukraine so the bloc's countries have to strengthen their defenses. “We have to deliver what Ukraine asks for,” she stressed, indicating that European countries can form coalitions to facilitate this type of aid.
After a first day of the summit in which the leaders committed to sending more military supplies but made no concrete announcements, the President of the Council, Charles Michel, assured that it is important that Europe fulfills the promises “in a matter of days and weeks” .
For his part, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte explained that the shared feeling among the leaders of the 27 is that “more must be done,” with Germany leading efforts to provide Patriots batteries. “We will coordinate the next few days to see how we can do more. The Patriots would be the best, but if there are no alternatives,” he said.
All after the issue of anti-aircraft defenses focuses attention both at the EU and NATO levels, which is holding a meeting with Zelensky this Friday to discuss more shipments. This Thursday, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg demanded that the allies take a step forward to reinforce their deliveries to Ukraine.
Although he indicated that NATO's European members have fewer than 100 Patriot batteries, since most of them are located in the United States, he stressed that NATO as a whole has “systems large enough to be able to supply Ukraine with significantly more.” ” of anti-aircraft defenses.
Likewise, regarding the reluctance of some allies that the provision of this aid means falling below NATO's military requirements in terms of Defense, Stoltenberg cleared the debate by pointing out that the organization will not be strict in this sense “if it is the only way to support Ukraine.
“There has to be a balance between the increased risks we have to face to our own national defense. But the reality is that supporting Ukraine, and helping them destroy Russian combat capabilities, also improves our security. I have said clearly that yes that is necessary, then we can be below NATO's capacity objectives,” summarized the former Norwegian prime minister.
