EU, Ukraine to sign bilateral security agreement – Euractiv

The European Union and Ukraine are anticipated to signal a long-term safety settlement when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits Brussels on Thursday (27 June), pledging to keep up navy help and different assist to Kyiv because it fights off Russia’s invasion.

The safety pact is a part of a wider Western effort to assist the nation fight Russia’s aggression and is supposed to enhance a sequence of comparable bilateral agreements Ukraine has to date sealed with its Western allies.

Ukrainian officers instructed Euractiv that Kyiv had sealed 17 such agreements to date, and several other extra will probably be signed within the coming months.

The EU-Ukraine safety settlement is predicted to put out and ‘lock in’ the present vary of the EU’s dedication to help Ukraine, as first reported by Euractiv in April.

It doesn’t specify the monetary worth or amount of the EU’s future navy help.

Nevertheless, the doc references the EU’s current choice to inject €5 billion right into a particular fund for Ukraine navy assist this yr.

“Additional comparable annual will increase might be envisaged till 2027,” the doc states.

Within the occasion of “future aggression”, the doc states that the EU and Ukraine intend to seek the advice of inside 24 hours on Kyiv’s wants and “swiftly decide” the subsequent steps in keeping with the agreed commitments.

It spells out 9 defence coverage areas, together with arms deliveries, navy coaching, defence business cooperation and demining, the place the EU can help Kyiv, in accordance with a draft seen by Euractiv.

The draft doc states commitments will stay legitimate “as Ukraine pursues its European path” and will probably be reviewed in 10 years on the newest.

Western navy officers have insisted that Ukraine’s safety offers signed with allies are usually not the identical as NATO’s mutual defence pact.

Nevertheless, the pledges to supply Ukraine with weapons and different assist to bolster its personal safety and deter any future invasion are extensively seen as an extra authorized assure for Kyiv that help will keep on the right track.

[Edited by Alice Taylor]

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