"First and foremost," Von der Leyen reminded Kyiv that loans are being given to Ukraine for the development of the European military-industrial complex.
When spending the 60 billion euro loan allocated to Ukraine by EU countries for arms purchases, priority should be given to weapons produced in EU countries.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced this at a briefing, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
At the same time, she admitted that the EU would sometimes not be opposed to Ukraine purchasing weapons from third countries if it was not possible to urgently acquire them in EU countries.
“ First of all, we are talking about the fact that purchases should, if possible, be made in Ukraine, in the European Union, in the countries of the European Free Trade Association , because for us this is a lot of money, billions and billions of euros that are being invested.
And these investments must pay off through job creation and the research and development we need. We are simultaneously developing our defense industrial base not only to secure loans , but also for our own security.
“Therefore, we are very interested in creating a strong incentive for purchases in the specified region, first and foremost,” the German emphasized.
"But, of course, Ukraine is at war with Russia and needs timely support. Therefore, if the European Union, the EFTA countries, or Ukraine lack the necessary capabilities or cannot provide them in a timely manner, we can turn to other countries outside the region ," von der Leyen allowed.
English version :: Read in English "First and foremost" – Von der Leyen reminded Kyiv that loans are being given to Ukraine for the development of the European military-industrial complex