Borrell and Stoltenberg: support Ukraine’s air defense, the need is urgent

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Capri, Naples – The EU must “take the Patriots missiles out of the warehouses” and send them to Ukraine, “where the war is intensifying, and I am sure we will do it quickly”. The EU’s High Representative for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, responded thus to those who asked him how – and when – Brussels could intensify its help to Kiev. The appeal was reiterated a few hours later by the Secretary General of NATO, Jens Stoltenberg, with the call for a “greater air defense” of Kiev.

Borrell and Stoltenberg participated in the meeting of G7 foreign ministers on 17-19 April in Capri, marked by an agenda that includes the Middle East, Ukraine and relations with sub-Saharan Africa among its priorities. April 17 saw the first discussions on the escalation between Israel and Iran, with the announcement of an agreement on the “retaliatory measures” that the Group will request against individuals involved in supplying war to Iran. On April 18, attention shifted to support for Ukraine’s air defense and political relations with the African Union, an increasingly stringent dialogue on the Sahel front and the repercussions of its instability on Europe.

Borrell and Stoltenberg: do more for Ukraine’s defense

The first issue on the table is the strengthening of support for Ukraine’s air defense, a point also insisted upon by German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. Borrell, speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the event, clarified that the EU cannot «count only on the USA, we must take our responsibility. We have the Patriots, we have the anti-missile systems, we have to take them out of the warehouses and send them to Ukraine.”

Europe, underlined Borrell, must “assume its responsibilities” and cannot “count” only on the USA: a reference to the 60.8 billion dollar aid package which will be examined by Congress at the weekend, hailed as an encouraging signal also from NATO secretary Jens Stoltenberg.

Stoltenberg himself, in turn present in Capri, drew the attention of the informal forum to the «critical, urgent need for greater air defense of Ukraine», welcoming the announcement of a new battery of German Patriots and the financing expected by Denmark and the Netherlands. Stoltenberg revealed that the Alliance is “dialogues” about the supply of missiles with other “specific countries” and declared that NATO has “no information” about an “imminent” attack.