“On a totally selfish personal note, I’d be delighted to be able to continue the good cooperation we’ve established with Sébastien Lecornu, there’s a lot to do. Defense policy has never been so important,” Pistorius told reporters when asked whether he was worried about the impact of a National Rally victory in the two-round election … Read more
The money won’t be used for reimbursements, as is normally the case with the UAF, but for direct purchases of kit like ammunition and aerial defense systems. A quarter of the amount will be used for purchases from Ukrainian industries. Countries had until 11 a.m. to voice their opinion, and none cast a negative vote, … Read more
Police in Jordan said on Saturday they had uncovered and detonated explosives stored in a residential area of the capital and were investigating the incident. The explosives, found in a home in the Marka neighborhood northeast of the capital, were detonated onsite after the area was evacuated, according to a brief statement by public … Read more
Russian President Vladimir Putin today warned South Korea that sending lethal weapons to Ukraine would be a “big mistake.” His comments come after Seoul announced it would consider arming Ukraine in response to Russia and North Korea signing a mutual defense pact on Wednesday. “If South Korea supplies weapons to Ukraine, it will not like … Read more
Paris has in recent months ramped up military cooperation with Yerevan with contracts and training. Arms sales include Thales-made GM200 air surveillance radars, while talks are underway on contracts for MBDA-made Mistral missiles. Earlier on Tuesday, Azerbaijan accused France of undermining the stability of the turbulent region, less than a year since Baku itself launched … Read more
While Putin claimed the treaty was “defensive in nature,” it will no doubt fuel Western concerns that the Kremlin is marshaling authoritarian states such as China, Iran and North Korea to back its war in Ukraine with both rhetoric and materiel. Concerns have been voiced in recent months that North Korea is supplying Russia with … Read more
Bardella ruled out sending long-range missiles that could hit Russian territory, according to Reuters. Paris and Kyiv are finalizing plans to send Western trainers, including French ones, to Ukraine. The plans would likely be jeopardized if the National Rally enters the French government following the snap election Macron called as a response to his party’s massive … Read more
Senior EPP figures, such as Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and party chief Manfred Weber, have made the acceptance of any new MEPs into the EPP conditional on their support for Ukraine. Weber negotiated directly with Magyar in Hungary last week. “I think the EPP understood the special, sensitive Hungarian situation in that war. … Read more
Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs, Dmytro Kuleba, says his country is in urgent need of weapons and wishes the air defence system Canada promised more than a year ago was already in Ukraine. Canada announced plans in January 2023 to donate a $406-million surface-to-air missile defence system, but there’s still no delivery date. “Of course, we … Read more
FASANO, Italy — G7 leaders are set to warn China over its trade practices, which include “harmful overcapacity” and “market distortions,” according to a draft statement seen by POLITICO. “We are not trying to harm China,” the leaders say in the latest G7 summit statement, but “we express our concerns about China’s persistent industrial targeting … Read more
