Discussions on establishing a new multi-year fund to support Ukraine within the North Atlantic Alliance are expected to continue until the NATO summit in Washington in July this year.

A NATO official who spoke on condition of anonymity said NATO foreign ministers, who are gathering in Brussels on 3-4 April, "will discuss the best way to organise NATO's support for Ukraine to make it more powerful, predictable and lasting."

"No final decisions will be made at the April ministerial, and discussions will continue as the Washington summit in July approaches," the official added.

The source’s comments addressed media reports suggesting that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is proposing the creation of a five-year, US$100 billion fund to support Ukraine.

The fund will likely be created as a follow-up to the decision by NATO leaders at the Vilnius summit to transform what is known as the Comprehensive Assistance Package for Ukraine into a multi-year programme to support Kyiv on its path to membership.

As part of this initiative, NATO may also take over the operational responsibilities of the US-led Ukraine Defence Contact Group (Ramstein format), which coordinates the supply of weapons to Kyiv.