KIEV, July 16– Ukraine and the European Union (EU) agreed to strengthen defense cooperation on Wednesday, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and visiting European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen signing a letter of intent on a strategic defense-industrial partnership, according to the presidential press service.
Von der Leyen, who arrived in Ukraine earlier in the day to take part in the 5th Ukraine-Southeast Europe Summit, noted during a meeting with Zelensky that the EU and Ukraine would further strengthen their defense cooperation, including in drone production.
While highlighting the EU’s record-level financial, political, and defense support for Ukraine, she announced the disbursement of 1 billion euros (about 1.15 billion U.S. dollars) for Ukraine drone capabilities under an Ukraine Support Loan worth 90 billion euros (about 103.1 billion U.S. dollars).
The two also discussed in detail the work on opening four negotiation clusters in Ukraine’s EU membership negotiations.
“This is our Ukrainian and European determination to go all the way to Ukraine’s full accession to the EU,” Zelensky said. (Namibia Daily News / Xinhua)
