At the meeting of the Contact Group on the Defense of Ukraine in the Rammstein format, the Netherlands joined the IT coalition and made its first contribution of €10 million.
Thisis reported by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
The purpose of the IT-coalition is to support the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces in the field of IT, communication and cyber security. In addition to the Netherlands and Ukraine, 10 more countries are participating in the initiative: Belgium, Great Britain, Denmark, Estonia, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Japan.
During the work of the Contact Group, Denmark, in particular, allocated 91 million Danish kroner (over €12 million) for cyber defense of Ukraine within the IT coalition. The funds will go to cyber security projects of the Armed Forces and the Ministry of Defense — this is an important contribution to the long-term support of the stateʼs cyber defense.
"Technology can help turn a war of position into a war of maneuver. The IT coalition is designed to provide the necessary digital basis for the deployment of any new technological solutions," said Deputy Minister of Defense for Digital Development Kateryna Chernogorenko.
- The IT coalition is a special group of states within the Contact Group on Defense of Ukraine ("Ramstein format") under the leadership of Estonia and Luxembourg. Estonia (€500,000) and Luxembourg (€10 million) also contributed to the IT coalition earlier. Lithuania and Latvia also provided Ukraine with assistance in the form of licenses and equipment.
- The Artillery Coalition to Strengthen the Ukrainian Army started working in Paris in January. During 2024 , France plans to produce 78 Caesar self-propelled guns for Ukraine (financed in parts by France, Ukraine and allies).
- Also this month, Ukraine and Latvia founded the Coalition of Drones and EW. Sweden and Great Britain have already joined it.
- In November 2023, the Coalition for the Development of Air Defense was created at Ramstein — Germany and France became its leaders. The coalition included 20 countries.
- There is also the Fighter Coalition, the Tank Coalition, the Coalition for Strengthening the Security of the Black Sea, and the Coalition of Opportunities for the Long-Term Defense of Ukraine and the Deterrence of Russian Aggression for Decades.