As Russia continues its relentless air strikes on Ukraine, Europe's leaders are marching on Kiev with pledges of new support.
Newly appointed French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné said in Kiev on Saturday that Ukraine would remain “France's priority” despite “increasing crises” during his first foreign trip since his appointment last week. Séjourné welcomed a “new phase” of joint arms production with Ukraine during a press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba.
Séjourné's trip followed a visit by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Friday, during which he announced a multi-year security agreement with Ukraine. The British leader pledged 2.5 billion pounds (2.9 billion euros) in military aid to Ukraine for 2024/2025 during his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kiev.
France's Séjourné pledged to strengthen joint cooperation with Ukraine and “strengthen Ukraine's ability to produce on its territory” with leading French companies. France is also negotiating a security agreement with Ukraine, but the details have yet to be announced.
Polish politician Donald Tusk is expected to visit Kiev this week, possibly on Monday.
The visits by European leaders come after weeks of renewed Russian airstrikes against Ukraine and amid fears that U.S. aid has stalled due to a gridlocked Congress and this year's American presidential election. On Saturday, Ukrainian air defense recorded a total of 40 attacks.
At the beginning of the month, Chancellor Olaf Scholz made an unusually strong call for other EU countries to supply more weapons to Ukraine. The weapons deliveries planned so far are “too small,” he said, even though Berlin had promised to double its military aid to Kiev to eight billion euros this year.
According to the Kiel Institute, which recorded military aid to Ukraine in the public sector, Germany was the second highest donor after the USA last year with 17.1 billion euros; This was followed by the United Kingdom with 6.6 billion euros as well as the Nordic and eastern EU countries. In comparison, France contributed just 0.54 billion euros, Italy 0.69 billion euros and Spain 0.34 billion euros.