Ukrainian Foreign Minister thanks Belgium for money for shells and talked about strengthening air defence

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib held a telephone conversation; one of the main topics was military support for Ukraine.

Source: European Pravda; Dmytro Kuleba on X (formerly Twitter)  

Dmytro Kuleba said that Hadja Lahbib expressed her condolences to Ukraine in connection with the tragedy in Odesa, where 12 people, including five children, were killed as a result of a Shahed hit in a house. 

"I informed my Belgian colleague about the current frontline situation and thanked Belgium for its additional contribution to purchasing artillery ammunition for Ukraine...I also stressed the importance of strengthening Ukraine's air defence, particularly our frontline air defence capabilities," the foreign minister said. 

He also expressed gratitude to his Belgian counterpart for confirming that Belgium, as the EU Council presidency, will contribute as much as possible to ensuring that decisions on Ukraine's European integration are made on time.  

They also discussed preparations for the global peace summit in Switzerland. 

Background: 

• Last week, Belgium promised €200 million for the Czech initiative to purchase 800,000 shells for Ukraine outside of Europe.
• Petr Pavel, President of Czechia, stated at the Munich Security Conference that his country had found up to 800,000 projectiles of the NATO standard calibre which it may send to Ukraine in a few weeks, if it receives funding for the delivery.
• The Financial Times reported that the required amount is US$1.5 billion.
• The Czech Defence Ministry stated earlier that it coordinated the efforts and sought preliminary commitments of Canada and Denmark, as well as other countries which preferred to remain anonymous.

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