Netherlands to allocate EUR 250 M for drones for Ukraine
According to Ukrinform’s correspondent in The Hague, the document was signed by Dutch Defense Minister Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius and Ukrainian Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, who is on an official visit to the Netherlands.
“I am particularly pleased that today we signed a Memorandum of Intent to further strengthen our cooperation in the field of innovation. Innovation is a key component of our partnership. Another such component is drones,” said Yeşilgöz-Zegerius.
The minister also noted that the first agreement on joint production between Dutch and Ukrainian companies was recently signed.
“We will continue to support Ukraine with drones. Ukraine has demonstrated that these capabilities are being used effectively to protect its population and counter Russian attacks. That is why today I can announce that the Netherlands will allocate 250 million euros to purchase drones for Ukraine from the Dutch defense industry,” she said.
According to her, “while Ukraine continues to successfully resist Russian aggression, Putin is increasingly resorting to brutal airstrikes on Ukrainian cities. These attacks continue to inflict terrible suffering on the civilian population. That is precisely why air defense is more important today than ever. Therefore, the Netherlands will also make an additional contribution of 250 million euros to the PURL initiative, which includes modern U.S. air defense systems. This brings our total contribution to this program to 1 billion euros. We will also continue to urge our European allies and partners to do their utmost to support Ukraine.”
She emphasized, “Ukrainians often thank us for the assistance we provide, but let me say this clearly once again: it is we who should be thanking you. For more than four years now, brave Ukrainian servicemen, together with the resilient Ukrainian people and leaders like you (Fedorov—ed.), have been fighting not only for Ukraine’s freedom but also for the security of all of Europe and countries such as the Netherlands.”
As reported by Ukrinform, Dutch partners, as part of the Maritime Capabilities Coalition, handed over an Alkmaar-class minehunter to the Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
