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STRASBOURG, 29 February 2024 - The European Parliament today adopted a resolution urging an increase and acceleration of military aid to Ukraine. The appeal is aimed in particular at the militarily strong Member States led by France, Spain and Italy. This week MEPs also approved the establishment of a €50 billion Instrument for Ukraine. Pirate MEP Markéta Gregorová has also long stressed the need for free trade for Ukraine as a tool to strengthen its economy.
On the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, MEPs are calling for more ammunition and weapons for Kiev, as well as stricter enforcement of sanctions against Russia. "After two years of war in Ukraine, we - as the main partners of a defending Ukraine - still face a great number of challenges. Recent developments in the war have shown how necessary it is for us to pick up a number of key gaps in our assistance. We need to engage in a serious dialogue with defence companies to ensure that the production and supply of munitions, shells and missiles are prioritised over third-country contracts," explains Gregorová.
The latest aid instrument, approved by MEPs last October, brings an additional €50 billion to Ukraine. However, the resolution adds that this alone will not be enough. The EU should now also focus on its own technological development and new tighter sanctions against the Kremlin. "The European Peace Facility must be transformed into a platform that will focus much more on incentives to deliver the most advanced military technology to Ukraine. As part of the next steps in response to the dynamics of the conflict, the EU must then resort, for example, to sanctions against Russia's nuclear sector, led by individual sanctions on Rosatom executives," continues Gregorová.
"I have also repeatedly tried to emphasise that Ukraine still needs a relaxation of trade measures with the EU. This is a vital part of our solidarity and the only way for Ukraine to export, in particular, its agricultural products, which represent a substantial part of Ukraine's income. Ukraine needs to finance its day-to-day operations as normally as possible, to maintain the functioning institutions of a war-ravaged state and, in general, to finance its own resistance," the MEP added.
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