Romania is among 17 of the European Union’s 27 member states, along with Norway, which agreed on Monday to jointly buy two billion euros worth of artillery munitions to be delivered to Ukraine to help it fight a war launched by Russia, Reuters reported.

The states that will participate in this program, according to the agreement reached on Monday, are:

• Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia,
• Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Luxembourg,
• Malta, Netherlands, Portugal,
• Romania, Slovakia, Sweden and Norway.

Other member states may join later, Reuters writes.

A million shells for Ukraine

• “This is a historic decision.
• According to my proposal, the member states agreed to provide Ukraine with one million artillery shells during the next 12 months,” said the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, during the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense of the EU countries.
• “We reached a political consensus on sending one million 155-mm projectiles to Ukraine.
• There are still many, many details that need to be (decided), but the most important thing for me is to finish these talks, and this shows me one thing: if there’s a will, there’s a way,” Estonian Defense Minister Hanno said. Pevkur, adding that the shells will be sent within 12 months.

What the agreement reached by European countries provides for is a three-stage plan

The plan, proposed by Borrell and approved on Monday by 17 of the 27 EU member states, calls for them to urgently provide Ukraine with shells, mainly of 155 mm caliber, from their own stockpiles, with funding of one billion euros. from member states’ contributions to a fund called the European Peace Fund (EPF). The states that offer these munitions will receive approximately 50-60% of the cost of the munitions from the EPF.

Later, another €1 billion from the EDF will be used by the European Defense Agency (EDA) or an association of at least three member states to jointly procure missiles destined for Ukraine, and will also be financed by the 18 member states of the program.

The third stage of the plan envisages increasing the production capacity of 12 EU arms manufacturers to replenish the stocks of EU countries depleted by aid to the Ukrainian military, and to continue supplies to Ukraine.

Shells needed in a war of attrition

Ukraine has signaled several times recently that the supply of 155mm shells is a critical necessity as it finds itself locked in a war of attrition with invading Russian forces, with both sides firing thousands of artillery shells each day.

Ukrainian and Western leaders have warned in recent weeks that Kyiv’s military is using up shells faster than its allies can produce them, prompting a new push for ammunition supplies and a search for ways to speed up production.

A joint munitions procurement initiative would be an important step towards EU integration, as defense procurement has largely been the prerogative of national governments. The project will be coordinated by the European Defense Agency of the EU.

EU officials say the initiative should lead to larger one-off orders for arms firms, encouraging them to invest in increased capacity. (Photo: Dreamstime.com)