Netherlands to provide two minesweepers to Ukraine

By 2025, Ukraine will receive two minesweepers of the Alkmaar type from the Kingdom of the Netherlands for demining the waters of the Black Sea.

Dutch Minister of Defense Kajsa Ollongren said this during a joint briefing of the defense ministers of Ukraine and the Netherlands at the Ukraine-Odesa Media Center.

"We understand the strategic and economic importance of harbors in Odesa to export food. The Netherlands will provide Ukraine with two minesweepers of the Alkmaar type to protect the maritime space. The issue of demining the Black Sea will not be resolved with the end of the war, which is why these minesweepers are a contribution to the future of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," said Ms. Ollongren.

According to the minister, Ukraine will receive these ships by 2025.

The Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Oleksiy Reznikov, noted that three factors determine such a period.

First, it takes time to train the crew for service on minesweepers. "These are complex systems, so the military must be able to use them," Reznikov emphasized. The second is that, according to the Montreux Convention, the passage of warships through the Bosphorus is impossible during wartime. Thirdly, the demining of the Black Sea is dangerous as long as the war continues in Ukraine and there is no built security architecture in Europe.

"I am sure that our military will quickly master these 'mine hunters,' so perhaps this deadline will be approaching," Reznikov added.

Ollongren also reported that the Netherlands would hand over M-3 bridges, crossings, and radar systems to Ukraine.

"We will continue our unwavering support for Ukraine, we will not allow russia to "come out of this brutal war dry," and we will fight for the free democratic future of Ukraine and the whole of Europe," the minister concluded.

For reference:

As reported, on March 13, the Minister of Defense of Ukraine, Oleksiy Reznikov, discussed the way to victory with the head of the Pentagon, Lloyd Austin.