UDCG members pledge EUR 21B in military support to Ukraine – Healey
UK Defense Secretary John Healey said this at a press conference following a UDCG meeting in Brussels on Friday, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.
"The new pledges of military aid announced today through the UDCG total over 21 billion euros. [This is] a record boost in military funding for Ukraine. And we are also surging that support to the frontline fight," Healey said.
The minister noted that the UK would spend GBP 4.5 billion this year in military support for Ukraine, the highest-ever level. Today, the UK announced the allocation of GBP 350 million to provide direct support to military personnel on the front line. This package includes radar systems, anti-tank mines, thousands of new drones, as well as an additional GBP 150 million to repair and maintain battlefield equipment in Ukraine. This will help restore about 3,000 Ukrainian vehicles that could be put back into the fight against Putin.
Healey noted that Russia had rejected U.S. President Donald Trump's peace settlement. Putin said he wanted peace, but he rejected a full ceasefire, continuing to drag his feet and delay the negotiations. Putin continues to fire on Ukraine's military and civilian targets, Healey said.
The British minister said that from January through March, 10,000 guided bombs were used against Ukraine. Russia is launching more than a hundred one-way attack drones into Ukraine every day.
"We've reached the point now where those battlefield casualties on both sides inflicted by drones now way outnumber those inflicted by artillery. In our calculation, 70% to 80% of battlefield casualties are now caused and inflicted by drones," Healey said.
He said that based on the current situation, 2025 will be a critical year for the war in Ukraine, and it will be just as critical for the countries and governments that support Ukraine.
A meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, co-chaired by the United Kingdom and Germany, took place in Brussels on Friday, April 11.
