Borrell calls on EU members’ armies to provide Ukraine with ammunition as soon as possible

High Representative of the EU Josep Borrell addressed the European defense ministers with a call to determine the supply of ammunition to Ukraine as a top priority and to transfer the necessary weapons to Ukraine from their own stocks.

He stated this at the NATO headquarters in Brussels during a press conference following the trilateral meeting with the participation of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba, Ukrinform reports.

Borrell said that he sent letters, based on the results of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, to all defense ministers of the EU countries requesting to provide ammunition for Ukraine from their own stocks and to give these supplies to Ukraine urgently.

He reminded that the EU would hold a meeting of defense ministers at the beginning of March and emphasized that defense remains the responsibility of the EU member states, so the national governments should make decisions regarding the supply of weapons to Ukraine of European states.

"The key word now is the coordination of joint efforts to support Ukraine. This is necessary for the rule of law to prevail over […] force. The only way Ukraine can win this war is to speed up delivery and increase our aid to Ukraine because the war shows its terrible face there. russia is destroying hospitals and killing people instead of ceasing fire," the EU high representative emphasized.

He noted that russia is a permanent member of the UN Security Council and a nuclear power. Despite this, it grossly violated the UN Charter by attacking a peaceful neighbor.

"According to the UN Charter, Ukraine has a sovereign right to defend itself against this baseless aggression. The international community  […] has the right to support the victim of aggression. Ukraine needs all possible help, including weapons and ammunition. They need it more than ever," Borrell emphasized.

He mentioned that today's trilateral meeting is the first of its kind and is truly historic. From the first day of the russian invasion of Ukraine, the EU and NATO stood side by side, not only condemning russian aggression but also working together to give Ukraine the ability to defend itself.

"Today, we reaffirmed unwavering support for Ukraine's territorial integrity and its right to self-defense. Our resolve has been strong since the beginning (of the aggression). And we continue to stick to it. We must accelerate our military aid to Ukraine today, especially with ammunition. This meeting gives us better procedures for and opportunities to coordinate our efforts," the EU high representative added.