NATO and the EU urge G7 nations to step up air defense for Ukraine and expand Iran sanctions
abcnews.go.comTop NATO and European Union officials are urging industrialized nations to take quick and concrete steps to provide more air defense systems to Ukraine
CAPRI, Italy — Top NATO and European Union officials urged foreign ministers from leading industrialized nations on Thursday to take quick, concrete steps to provide more air defense systems and artillery to Ukraine, warning that continued delays could tilt the war in Moscow’s favor.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell addressed a meeting of foreign ministers of G7 nations meeting on the Italian resort island of Capri. Russia’s war on Ukraine and surging tensions in the Middle East over Iran’s unprecedented attack on Israel over the weekend have topped the agenda of the gathering.
Without more Patriot air defense missile systems to protect against Russian strikes, “the electricity system of Ukraine will be destroyed. And no country can fight without having electricity at home, in the factories, in the front line,” Borrell told reporters on the sidelines of the event.
Stoltenberg welcomed signs that the U.S. Congress might soon vote on a $61 billion aid package for Ukraine, the bulk of which would go to purchasing weapons and ammunitions from U.S. defense manufacturers. And he welcomed other recent financial pledges from the Netherlands and Denmark as well as Germany's recent announced delivery of a new Patriot missile battery.
But he said more long-term and sustainable aid was necessary to better coordinate Ukraine's response over the long term.
“There is an urgent, critical need for more air defense,” Stoltenberg said, adding that artillery rounds were also needed. “We cannot continue to be in a situation where Russia is
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