BRUSSELS: European Union leaders will discuss the war in Ukraine with UN chief Antonio Guterres on Thursday and also endorse a plan to ramp up the supply of artillery shells to Kyiv.
\nGuterres will be a guest at an EU summit in Brussels, days after the renewal of a deal brokered by the UN and Turkiye on the safe export of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea.
\nThat humanitarian measure will discussed at a working lunch with Guterres before the UN secretary-general takes his leave and EU leaders get an update on the war from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky via video link, officials said.
\n\u201cWe will, as always, reaffirm our unwavering commitment to assist Ukraine,\u201d declared Charles Michel, president of the European Council of EU leaders.
\nThe leaders will give their blessing to a plan \u2014 agreed by foreign ministers on Monday \u2014 to send 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine over the next year by digging into stocks and making a landmark move into joint procurement.
\nZelensky\u2019s government has told its Western allies that it urgently needs large amounts of 155mm shells as it fights a fierce war of attrition with invading Russian forces.
\nOfficials have warned that Ukraine is burning through shells at a faster rate than its allies can produce them, prompting a renewed search for ammunition and ways to boost production.
\nThe EU scheme is based on a plan from foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, following a proposal from Estonia, one of Ukraine\u2019s most assertive supporters inside the EU.
\nThe plan earmarks $1.09 billion (1 billion euros) for the swift supply of shells \u2013 and possibly missiles \u2013 from existing stocks and another 1 billion euros for joint orders by EU countries for more rounds.
\nThe money will come from the European Peace Facility, an EU-run fund that has already provided billions of euros for military aid to Ukraine. Leaders at the summit may begin a discussion on a further top-up to the fund, diplomats said.
\nIt is unclear how quickly the plan could have an impact on the battlefield, partly because governments keep secret how much ammunition they have left in their stockpiles, which have already been depleted by deliveries to Ukraine.
\nArtillery produced via a new joint procurement initiative will take months to arrive, although EU officials stress they are moving at unprecedented speed for such a project. They say they aim to sign first contracts with arms firms in late May.
\n\u201cWe will need to take measures to boost the manufacturing capacity of the European defense industry,\u201d Michel said in his letter inviting fellow EU leaders to the summit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BRUSSELS: European Union leaders will discuss the war in Ukraine with UN chief Antonio Guterres on Thursday and also endorse a plan to ramp up the supply of artillery shells to Kyiv. Guterres will be a guest at an EU summit in Brussels, days after the renewal of a deal brokered by the UN and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":321296,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-321294","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n