EU summit backs urgent delivery of air defence systems to Ukraine
The EU summit considers it urgent to provide Ukraine with additional air defence systems and has called on member states to expedite the delivery of all necessary military assistance, including artillery shells and missiles.
In their conclusions, supported by all 27 EU leaders, the European Council strongly condemned Russia's air and missile attacks against the civilian population and civilian and critical infrastructure in Ukraine, including recent intensified attacks on the energy sector.
"The European Council underlines the need to urgently provide air defence to Ukraine and to speed up and intensify the delivery of all the necessary military assistance, including artillery ammunition and missiles. It calls on the Council, notably at its upcoming meeting, and on Member States to ensure the necessary follow-up," the text reads.
Leaders pledged that the EU and its member states will step up humanitarian assistance and civil protection assistance, including equipment such as generators and power transformers.
Charles Michel, President of the European Council, who chaired the summit, stated that in his address, Ukraine's leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy asked the Europeans to help convince the United States to expedite arms shipments and funding for Ukraine's economy.
Michel said leaders agreed that Europe should also assist Ukraine more quickly. "This is not a question of months, it’s a question of days and weeks. It’s very important that we deliver on our promises," he told the media after the meeting.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for increased military aid to Ukraine, particularly with regard to air defence, in an address to EU leaders who had gathered for the summit in Brussels on 17 April.
Zelenskyy reminded the participants about the Russian attack on Chernihiv, which claimed the lives of at least 17 people.
Earlier, the German Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defence, Annalena Baerbock and Boris Pistorius, announced a global initiative to search for additional air defence assets for Ukraine in a letter to dozens of countries.