Iceland will help Ukraine with mine clearance equipment

25 December, 2023 Russian PMN-4 mines in the Kherson region. August 2022. Ukraine.

Photo credits: Task Force "Kakhovka" Iceland joins two coalitions supporting Ukraine. The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine said that the coalitions are related to IT and demining.

Iceland also allocates EUR340,000 through the NATO Comprehensive Assistance Package to purchase medical supplies for Ukraine. "Iceland joins two coalitions supporting Ukraine - the IT and Demining Coalitions. Iceland has also announced additional funding of EUR340,000 through NATO's Comprehensive Assistance Package for the purchase of medical supplies for Ukraine," the statement said.

The ministry notes that since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Iceland has provided humanitarian, economic and security support to Ukraine, mainly through international organizations such as the UN, the World Bank, NATO and other multinational forums.

Rustem Umierov. Photo credits: hromadske.ua

"My gratitude to the government and people of Iceland for their strong support. Thanks to our partners, we will be able to strengthen the areas of information technology, communications and cybersecurity, as well as have the necessary training and mine clearance equipment," said Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umierov.

In turn, Icelandic Foreign Minister Bjarni Benediktsson expressed hope that their support will lead to strengthening Ukraine's defense capabilities. "By joining coalitions and providing additional funding to the Comprehensive Assistance Package for Ukraine we continue our non-lethal support to Ukraine as it fights Russia's unjust and illegal invasion," he added. The IT Coalition currently includes eight countries: Estonia, Luxembourg, Belgium, Denmark, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Japan.

The UK and Italy have also announced their intention to join.

Illustration on the topic: Iceland-Ukraine

This is not the first aid to Ukraine from Iceland. In 2022, Iceland and Lithuania donated warm clothing for servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Estonia and Iceland also donated a military field hospital to Ukraine.

In 2023, Iceland purchased ten fuel trucks for the needs of the Ukrainian army for the defense support of Ukraine against the Russian invasion.