The EU Council has approved the allocation of 1 billion euros for the purchase of artillery shells and, if necessary, missiles for Ukraine, the institution's website reports.
"Today, the EU Council approved €1 billion in assistance under the European Peace Facility (EPF), which will further strengthen Ukraine's capacity and resilience to defend its independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as to protect civilians from russian military aggression," a press release on the EU's official website said on Friday, Interfax-Ukraine reports.
The funds will reportedly finance "the provision of 155 mm artillery shells to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and, if necessary, missiles to be jointly purchased by EU member states from the European defense industry."
"Today's decision is another important step towards supplying more ammunition to Ukraine. Ukraine's armed forces need a significant amount of ammunition to protect the Ukrainian people and territory. They need it fast," said EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell.
"Together with the previous decision on the rapid delivery of ammunition from existing stocks, we are allocating €2 billion for this purpose, bringing the total amount of EU military support to Ukraine to €5.6 billion," the diplomat emphasized.
As reported, Germany's Rheinmetall announced it would produce 600,000 shells a year for Ukraine.