Kubilius expects SAFE loans to be used for the development of the Ukrainian defense industry
24 August 01:16
European Commissioner for Defense Andrius Kubilius said he is more optimistic about the prospect of investing money from the 150 billion euro SAFE defense fund in the Ukrainian defense industry.
His words were quoted by Radio Liberty, "Komersant Ukrainian" reports.
Kubilius suggested that as early as November, the European Commission may announce how much of the loans from the SAFE fund will be directed to Ukraine.
He said that he was “much more optimistic” than in the spring, when he expressed concern that he had not heard any intention to use SAFE loans specifically for procurement in Ukraine.
The European Commissioner also said that he did not know whether EU countries were ready to finance the purchase of $90 billion worth of American weapons, as Volodymyr Zelenskyy had said after the talks in Washington.
At the same time, he called these talks important and drew attention to the fact that “Putin is nervous, he is trying to discredit that meeting.”
As a reminder, the European Commission’s SAFE program, which is part of a broader plan to strengthen EU defense until 2030, provides €150 billion in loans for EU member states to invest in defense.
