United to win: Slovakian citizens raise €4 mln to purchase ammunition for Ukraine, delivery complete
Photo: Associated Press
Ukraine has received 4 million euros worth of artillery shells from Slovak citizens who wanted to support the Czech initiative to purchase ammunition, as the official government in Bratislava declined to do so.
The Slovak publication Noviny reported this.
As Fedor Blaščák, the initiator of the ammunition collection for Ukraine, reported, the collected funds made it possible to purchase 122 tons of ammunition. Six trucks delivered the ammunition to the logistics warehouse, from where it was transferred to Ukraine.
As reported earlier, the STV Group company produced 2,692 shells using the 4 million euros collected by 70,000 Slovak citizens in just three weeks.
The collection was launched after the Slovak government announced it would not join the Czech government's initiative to raise funds for ammunition that Ukraine lacks.
According to Blaščák, the entire process, from the announcement of the purchase of ammunition with the raised funds to the news of its delivery into the recipient's possession, took approximately five months.
"To some, it may seem long, 4-5 months, but this is a record time for the supply of military equipment and ammunition. Each unit of ammunition had to be checked, which required much paperwork," he emphasized.
Of the 4.5 million euros collected by the Slovaks as part of the Ammunition for Ukraine campaign, 4 million have been used to date, and another 500,000 will be used soon.
"A new contract has already been signed for this, but these are smaller grenades for grenade launchers. And they should be delivered by the end of the year," Fedor Blaščák added.
In February 2022, the Slovaks established the Mier Ukraine organization at the start of the Russian invasion to show their support for Ukraine and its people. They disagreed with the government's decision not to participate in the Czech projectile proposal. As a result, they launched their fundraising campaign called "Ammunition for Ukraine."
"Many citizens of Slovakia disagree with the decision of the Slovak government not to provide aid to Ukraine in the form of ammunition. And by launching a crowdfunding campaign, we allowed these people to express their opinion and actively help," one of the founders of Mier Ukraine, Lucia Štasselová, says.
Slovak public organizations Mier Ukraine, Darček pre Putina, Donio, and All4Ukraine launched the campaign to collect funds to join the Czech initiative.
The government's stance starkly contrasts with civil society's, with Prime Minister Fico even going so far as to offend Slovaks. While discussing the money that was raised, he referred to it as "prd do Stromovky," which roughly translates to "farting in Stromovky." In his address, he also deemed the initiative as "merely symbolic."
"We recognize that 4 million can be considered symbolic compared to the funds allocated to support Ukraine by countries such as the USA. However, in the context of Slovakian politics, this is a significant gesture that is important for Ukraine. It demonstrates that the citizens of our country are in solidarity with them," Lucia Štasselová replied to the prime minister.
She also mentioned that this initiative is a way of showing the international community that the views of Slovak citizens are not only represented by the government of Robert Fico. They want and can take action and offer support independently.
For reference:
During the Munich Security Conference on February 17, Czech President Petr Pavel announced that his country could procure 500,000 155 mm and 300,000 122 mm rounds in weeks, provided it had the necessary funds.
In total, 15 countries supported the procurement of ammunition for Ukraine outside of Europe.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Jan Lipavský, stated that 1.5 million shells could be supplied within the initiative's framework for procuring artillery ammunition for Ukraine.
It is worth adding that the Czech Republic has already identified more than a million units of artillery ammunition in countries outside the European Union, which can be purchased for transfer to Ukraine.
In turn, the President of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, said that the Czech initiative had gained momentum.
The first batch of ammunition from the "Czech initiative" started being delivered in June. Within the next two months, Ukraine received 100,000 artillery shells, with an additional 500,000 to be delivered by the end of the year.
At present, over one-third of the 500,000 munitions pledged by the Czech initiative are already in Ukraine.
