This week the European Union will begin considering a new plan to provide "tens of billions of euros in military aid" to Ukraine. Diplomats propose to create a specialized military fund, to which about €6.5 billion of assets of the European Peace Fund will be sent, and €5 billion will be transferred annually during 2024-2027.
The Wall Street Journal writes about it.
If the EU approves the new plan, EU member states will be able to return more than 20 billion euros from EU funds to their budgets in exchange for "tens of billions of euros" in military aid that they will provide to Ukraine over the next four years.
The idea is to use this money for a joint purchase by several EU member states of ammunition, drones and air defense missiles for Ukraine. The rest of the money will be used to pay for the growing costs of the EU military training program for Ukraine. This year, the fund can offer member states €7.5 billion in military aid compensation.
The plan would allow smaller EU member states with small stockpiles of ammunition to pool their resources for joint procurement to contribute more to aid to Ukraine. The structure of the fund will avoid the blocking of aid by individual countries of the bloc.
It could also ensure steady demand for military equipment over the next few years, which could motivate European defense companies hesitant to ramp up production of critical weapons.
There will be a transition period before the new plan takes effect. Discussions on the plan will begin in the coming days, and the proposal is likely to be discussed at an EU summit on February 1. However, any final decision is likely to take several weeks.
- In July 2023, it was reported that the European Union planned to create a special fund to finance the Ukrainian army over the next four years in the amount of up to €20 billion. €5 billion were to be allocated each year.
- The EU is still unable to agree on the creation of a special fund, because Hungary opposes this plan, and such decisions must be made unanimously.