The Council of the European Union approved the financing of the purchase of ammunition for Ukraine for €1 billion.

The press service of the Council of the EU stated this in its statement.

The European Union will finance the provision to the Ukrainian Armed Forces of 155-mm artillery rounds and, if requested, missiles, which will be jointly procured by EU member states from the European defense industry.

Procurement contracts or purchase orders will need to be concluded before September 30, 2023.

“Together with the previous decision to swiftly provide ammunition from existing stocks, we are committing €2 billion to this purpose, bringing the total EU military support to Ukraine to €5.6 billion,” said Josep Borrell, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

The measure will support joint procurement of ammunition and missiles from economic operators established in the EU or Norway, and their production.

Together with the previous packages of military support, the assistance measure adopted today brings the total EU contribution for Ukraine to support the delivery of military equipment under the EPF to €5.6 billion.

As previously reported, on March 20, the European Union agreed on a plan to supply ammunition to Ukraine in the amount of €2 billion.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine are to receive one million rounds of artillery ammunition within the following 12 months.

On May 3, the European Commission approved the Act in Support of Ammunition Production and the urgent shipment of ammunition to Ukraine.

This decision will help to increase the production capacity of the EU and solve the current shortage of ammunition and missiles, as well as their components.

It is worth noting that Hungary refused to participate in the EU project on joint procurement of ammunition for Ukraine.