Portugal offered a million euros for the purchase of artillery ammunition for Ukraine

National Defense Minister Helena Carreiras said on Thursday that Portugal will allocate one million euros for the joint purchase of large-caliber ammunition for Ukraine.

“As part of the agreement we signed with the European Defense Agency last year, we will be able to contribute one million euros towards the purchase of ammunition for Ukraine as part of this joint effort,” Helena Carreiras said following a ministerial meeting at the headquarters of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO) in Brussels.

The minister added that large-caliber ammunition, in particular 155mm, is “Ukraine’s most urgent need.”

The Portuguese investment in joint acquisition of ammunition is part of the European Union’s goal of obtaining one million artillery ammunition by the end of the year.

Helena Carreiras also reported that this year Portugal will conduct training on its territory for Ukrainian Air Force personnel for four to six months in the field of air traffic control and maintenance of F-16 fighters.

“These exercises will take place very soon, they are now being finalized in preparation,” he added, adding that Portugal has provided the opportunity to host Ukrainian military personnel to participate in Portuguese Air Force exercises scheduled for this year.

Early last year, the European Union pledged to supply Ukraine with one million artillery shells to try to meet local needs.

By the end of the year, just over a third of the target had been achieved, prompting the European Commission to admit in January this year that the pledge was doomed to fail.

Meanwhile, the European Commission has set a new target of sending one million large-caliber ammunition by the end of 2024, taking advantage of the shells it has already acquired as part of an earlier promise to the Ukrainian government.