Zelensky and Stoltenberg discuss €100 bln fund for Ukraine during meeting in Kyiv

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg made an unannounced visit to the Ukrainian capital on April 29. Upon his arrival, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky met with the European guest.

The NATO press service reported this.

This is Stoltenberg's third visit to Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale war.

At the meeting, he and Zelensky discussed the proposal to establish a €100 billion special fund to support Ukrainian defense over five years financially.

According to the President of Ukraine, Ukraine's allies have the opportunity to implement such an initiative.

^{Photo: Office of the President}

Zelensky pointed out that setting up such a fund is crucial for Ukraine. The President stressed that this should not come at the cost of bilateral quantities outlined in agreements on security assurances.

Additional Patriot systems for Ukraine were also discussed at the meeting. The head of state said that Ukraine will receive Patriot missiles without delay.

In particular, Ukraine will definitely receive additional missiles to the Patriot air defense systems that are available in the country sooner, and the corresponding work continues regarding the delivery of new Patriot systems.

"Regarding additional packages and the number of missiles to the Patriots, we expect a positive response. I think we will receive this supply. And thank God that after the convocation of our Council, we received answers that there will be no pauses in the process," Zelensky said.

The president also announced that he discussed with Stoltenberg the acquisition of additional Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems by Ukraine.

"Today, we discussed with the Secretary General where we see (the presence of Patriot – ed.). We, for our part, also work analytically. We understand which countries have what. There are relevant dialogues. We are working on additional Patriot systems," said Zelensky.

He added that as soon as additional Patriot air defense systems are delivered to Ukraine, "all of us feel it."

"It is important to feel them not in words but in the sky, in the real protection of the sky," Zelensky emphasized.

It should be noted that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that in recent months, NATO allies have not provided Ukraine with the promised support and called for the acceleration of the delivery of weapons. He said this during the Atlantic Bridge event in Berlin on April 25.

"We must be honest because the reality is that NATO allies have not provided the promised support to Ukraine in recent months," he said.

The Secretary General of NATO mentioned that Washington couldn't provide financial aid to Kyiv for several months, and the amount of European ammunition being supplied is below the levels promised by the EU.