The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has urged the participants of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in the Ramstein format to be more active in making contributions to the Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) program and not to wait for the NATO summit in Ankara, scheduled for July this year.
At the opening of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in the Ramstein format on Thursday, Zelenskyy thanked everyone supporting the work through the PURL program, noting that it currently has a real impact alongside bilateral cooperation. He emphasized that sometimes these supplies matter on a day-to-day basis, as receiving Patriot missiles on the eve of a massive strike being prepared by Russia helps protect lives, meaning that time is of the essence.
The head of state declared that he is aware of decisions prepared by some countries regarding new contributions to PURL and expressed his gratitude to them, but requested that these steps be implemented as quickly as possible. He remarked that although some countries would like to announce their contributions at the summit in Ankara, it is still a few weeks away. In this regard, the President urged them to make these important decisions right at the current meeting so that weapons supplies for defense can be ensured. Since Russian strikes on Ukraine happen every day, he asked not to delay even for a single day what can be done through PURL today.
The President of Ukraine also called on the meeting participants to integrate more deeply at every level of defense cooperation in order to expand the capabilities to protect lives. He proposed preparing strong decisions and stronger cooperation for the Ankara summit so that the political level of partnership corresponds to reality.
Zelenskyy informed that during a conversation with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on Wednesday, he raised two urgent issues: the number of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) and long-range artillery shells. He stressed that currently both are insufficient, despite the urgent need. According to the head of state, the funds allocated for this, the volumes produced by Europe, and what the Ukrainian army receives are not enough, but all these capabilities can be increased.
