EU plan to buy Ukraine shells stalled over choosing manufacturers - report
Two weeks after the EU announced a historic deal to provide Ukraine with one million artillery shells, the bloc is still figuring out the legalities of how to implement it, Politico reported, citing sources.
EU ambassadors met on Wednesday to iron out the minutes of a first-of-its-kind plan to jointly purchase ammunition for Ukraine, but failed to make significant progress on one of the key issues, according to several diplomats who spoke to Politico on condition of anonymity.
The bone of contention remains whether ammo contracts will be awarded exclusively to EU companies and how they can be legally defined, or whether they will also be open to outside manufacturers.
According to Politico, France is insisting that the money stay within EU borders. Greece and Cyprus supported Paris, which some diplomats say is due to their desire to avoid contracts with Turkish producers.
Sources added that the European Commission had more work to do to determine the capabilities of EU companies before a final agreement could be reached.
With the issue at an impasse, EU ambassadors focused on finalising the less contentious part of the deal – the transfer of ammunition from their stockpiles to Ukraine, to be compensated by the European Peace Facility fund.
The diplomats said to Politico that the ambassadors had finalised the deal on the transfer, with the legal document expected to be officially published next week.
The European Union agreed on a €2bn plan to provide Ukraine with one million artillery shells within twelve months on 20 March. The money will be split between the European Peace Facility, which compensates EU members’ direct military support for Ukraine, and arms deals with manufacturers.