European countries intend to buy American weapons for Ukraine.
Arabian Sea Newspaper - Special
((Arabian Gulf)) Follow-ups: On Tuesday, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark announced that they intend to purchase $1 billion worth of American weapons under a NATO plan to support Ukraine in the ongoing war between it and Russia. The purchases from American stockpiles will be the first under the "Ukraine Priority Requirements List" mechanism launched last month by US President Donald Trump and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. The Dutch government stated that it will purchase weapons worth 500 million euros ($577 million), while the three Scandinavian countries will jointly purchase weapons worth $500 million. The four governments stressed the need to support Ukraine, which has been facing increasing Russian military pressure for months. Dutch Defense Minister Robin Bricklemans said in a post on the X platform: "By supporting Ukraine resolutely, we increase the pressure on Russia (to push it) to negotiate." The minister described the air strikes launched by Russia on an almost daily basis as a "real horror" and warned that Russia's advance into Ukrainian territory would pose a wider threat to Europe. He pointed out that with "Russia's increasing dominance over Ukraine, the danger to the Netherlands and our allies in NATO increases." During a press conference to announce the Scandinavian initiative, Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson stressed that "Ukraine is not only fighting for its security, but also fighting for our security," and Sweden will contribute $275 million. According to the Ministry of Defense, the Dutch aid package includes pieces of American Patriot missiles and other systems to meet Ukraine's needs on the front lines. The Swedish government said in a statement that "the support will include air defense systems, including ammunition for the Patriot system, anti-tank systems, ammunition and spare parts." Washington will allow the delivery of weapons and military equipment from its stockpiles to Ukraine under the mechanism agreed upon with NATO. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the donations and described them as "a very strong initiative that greatly enhances our ability to protect lives." Zelensky said in a post on X that "these steps are a new and real foundation for long-term security throughout Europe. Russia will never turn Europe into a continent of wars." Zelensky held talks with Trump on Tuesday, three days before the deadline set by the White House chief for Russia to take an initiative to end the war. He said in a post on a social networking site that he discussed with Trump the imposition of sanctions on Russia and "bilateral defense cooperation," without going into any details. The Secretary General of NATO praised the Netherlands' move as the first announced within the framework of the mechanism agreed upon between the bloc and Washington, and also welcomed the Scandinavian move. Rutte said in a statement, "From the early days of Russia's large-scale invasion, Denmark, Norway and Sweden have shown unwavering support for Ukraine. I commend these allies for their rapid efforts" to activate this initiative.
