Belgium Allocates Funds for Ukraine’s Shells
28 February, 2024 Hulls of 155mm projectiles produced by Forges de Tarbes. Photo credits: Remi Benoit The Belgian government has announced a new financial aid package for the purchase of artillery shells to be sent to Ukraine.
A local media Le Soir reported on this. During a conference held on February 28, 2024, Belgian Defense Minister Ludivine Dedonder announced that her country would join a coalition to purchase artillery shells found by the Czech Republic in an unnamed country. First of all, this financial package worth EUR200 million will allow Ukraine to receive about 50,000 artillery shells.
Polish-made 155 mm artillery shells.
Photo credits: PGZ S.A.
The procurement will be coordinated by the Czech Republic and funded by the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Sweden, Canada, and Denmark. The announcement of the new financial assistance package followed a visit to Kyiv by Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo and his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. As previously reported, Czech President Petr Pavel, during a discussion at the Munich Security Conference, said that his country had found almost a million artillery shells outside of NATO.
According to the Czech President, the country's representatives managed to find about 500,000 155-mm artillery shells and 300,000 122-mm shells abroad.
A batch of 155-mm M795 shells from the United States for Israel. October 2023.
Photo credits: 86th Airlift Wing
He added that they could be transported to Ukraine in a matter of weeks if funding is secured quickly. In addition to artillery shells, the Czech Republic is searching for various weapons and equipment around the world that could potentially be transferred to Ukraine. After that, some countries, such as Canada, began preparations to allocate appropriate financial packages for their purchase.
According to sources at the Ministry of Defense of Canada, the government is preparing to support a £30 million proposal for the purchase of these shells.