The European Union’s new foreign policy chief says the bloc has delivered 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine so far and plans to produce more.
Kaja Kallas was speaking in an interview by Ukrainian media on Sunday during a visit to Kyiv.
The number of artillery shells fulfills the EU’s pledge, which it promised to deliver by March this year.
But Kallas said, “It’s not enough, more needs to be done.”
As for next year’s military aid to Ukraine, Kallas said the actual number is yet to be determined. She added, “We need to really speed up the process of producing more.”
Ukraine has suffered from a serious shortage of ammunition, but the country aims to boost its offensive against Russia as Western countries step up their support. The United States and Britain have reportedly allowed Ukraine to use their long-range missiles to strike inside Russia.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Tass news agency reported on Sunday that Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the federal budget for 2025. It said about 126 billion dollars is earmarked for defense, up 25 percent from this year.
Russia is expected to use its huge defense budget to boost weapons production.
