The European Union is inviting member countries to review Ukraine’s $5.4 billion military aid fund, Bloomberg said.
“The European Union’s foreign-policy arm has presented member states with a proposal to revamp fund that provides military support fund to Ukraine, as the EU shifts from sending weapons from existing stocks to procuring new ones,” the publication said in the statement.
According to a document from the European External Action Service, seen by Bloomberg, the terms to establish a previously proposed Ukraine Assistance Fund with an annual budget of about EUR 5 billion ($5.4 billion), which member countries have failed to agree on, were set out.
“Under the current funding mechanism, known as the European Peace Facility (EPF), member states are reimbursed for weapons they send Ukraine. The facility’s size has been expanded several times but decisions to allocate and disburse funds require unanimous backing and there’s a backlog that will need to be covered,” the publication said.
The agency says diplomats in some countries question the effectiveness of EPF in its current form, since most future deliveries will be newly acquired weapons rather than those taken from existing stockpiles. At the same time, other member countries prefer that the relief fund be built into EPF, and some countries want to continue to use the current mechanism.
The EU foreign-policy’s proposal aims to reconcile the different positions “by changing the fund’s governance, fixing its reimbursement rates and giving a higher bonus for joint initiatives between European and Ukrainian industries. Reimbursements for deliveries from stocks and from unilateral procurement would gradually phase out, the draft says.”
Bloomberg said the fund will be divided into two “European pillars” supported through the European Peace Facility: providing lethal and non-lethal support to Ukraine through joint procurement of European industry, as well as continuing to train and equip Ukrainian forces.
This fund will be used to meet Ukraine’s immediate needs for artillery, specialized ammunition, UAVs and air defense systems, as well as mine clearance, military medical support and cybernetics.
“As part of the proposals, the EU should consider setting targets with specific deadlines for implementation, and member states should indicate how they intend to contribute to their achievement,” the publication said.