Kallas Urges Countries to Give Ukraine Expiring Air Defense Missiles

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas urged countries with air defense interceptors nearing their expiration dates to transfer them to Ukraine, where they could be used to protect civilians from Russian attacks.“The main issue is air defense. They are lacking interceptors,” Kallas said at a press conference ahead of an informal meeting of EU defense ministers on Tuesday, Sept. 1.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.“We know that some of the countries have interceptors that will expire soon. So, it would be very good if those would be given to Ukraine so that they can use them to protect their people,” she said.Russia escalating attacks against civiliansKallas said July and August have been the deadliest months for civilians in Ukraine.“Russia is really escalating to hurt the people of Ukraine as much as possible to break them,” she said. “The Ukrainians, of course, are standing strong, and we have to support them.”Kallas said the EU was also reaching out to countries outside the bloc to obtain more interceptors for Ukraine, although she acknowledged that the effort was difficult.At the same time, work is underway to develop European interceptor missiles in cooperation with Ukraine, she added.EU seeks more air defense funding for UkraineKallas said the informal ministerial meeting would not produce direct decisions, but officials were pushing to unblock the European Peace Facility, with an estimated amount of $7.5 billion.“If that would happen in the coming days, then many Member States have already said that all the funds that they are getting back, they will give to Ukraine,” Kallas said. Other Topics of Interest Graham’s ‘Sanctions Bill From Hell’ Against Russia Hits House Roadblock The bill would let Trump impose tariffs of up to 500% on countries buying Russian energy, but both Democrats and some Republicans are pushing back. She added that this would provide significant new funding for air defense and other capabilities Ukraine needs.Ministry to discuss European space capabilitiesEU defense ministers will also discuss the bloc’s space capabilities, which Kallas described as a key enabler of defense with both civilian and military uses.“We really need to step up so that we are still a space power, considering what is going on there,” she said. Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 97% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.