EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has been working to implement a €40 billion ($43 billion) military aid plan for Ukraine, and has stated that the plan has ‘broad support’ among the European countries – but is that really the case?
Sputnik reported:
“Italy, France, Spain, and Portugal have balked at EU foreign policy chief Kaja According to La Stampa, the initial amount might dwindle to a mere €5 billion, just enough for large-caliber ammunition.
Kallas has clarified that the proposal, set for approval at the March 20 EU summit, as being “voluntary,” adding that ‘countries far from Russia don’t see the threat as clearly as their neighbors’.”
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani has publicly raised multiple questions about the top diplomat’s plan, that comes as the EU nations are already tangled with Commissioner Ursula von der Leyen’s €800 billion defense spending boost – an initiative that will see countries increase their already critical national debt.
This is a complicated proposition for budget-constrained nations like Italy, France, and Spain.
The proposal by Kallas is expected to double the EU’s military support for Ukraine.
Ukrainska Pravda reported:
“According to diplomats, the proposal has strong support from Northern and Eastern European countries.
But some southern European capitals have been more reserved, reflecting the divide between those geographically closer to Russia, which have provided more aid to Ukraine, and those further away, which have provided less.
Estonia, Denmark and Lithuania are leading the way in Europe, allocating more than 2% of their GDP to Kyiv between January 2022 and December 2024, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy think tank.”
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said the proposal would need to be discussed in depth in light of future developments.
“’We are waiting for the Trump-Putin telephone call to see if there will be any steps forward in order to reach a ceasefire. There is a lot of expenditure to be tackled’, he said, adding that Italy also needs to find money to increase its own defense spending.
Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares said: ‘We’ll see how the debate goes, but at this point there’s no decision on it’. Albares said that Spain had already pledged €1 billion in military aid to Ukraine this year.”
Besides the Mediterranean countries, there is also strong resistance from Hungary and Slovakia, who will not provide military aid to Ukraine.
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