Brussels: Kallas unveils five-billion-euro air defence package for Kyiv
EU High Representative Kaja Kallas on Monday presented a five-billion-euro package to reinforce Ukrainian air defences, financed by Germany, the Netherlands and the Nordic members, in response to Russia's Oreshnik attack on Kyiv.
The EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, unveiled a five-billion-euro package to reinforce Ukraine’s air defences at Monday’s Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels on 26 May.
The package was framed as a response to Russia’s massive 24 May strike, when a hypersonic Oreshnik missile and 600 drones hit Kyiv. It is financed by Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland, with additional contributions from the Czech Republic and Poland.
For Serbia, which has not sanctioned Russia and is not financing military aid to Ukraine, the package matters for a different reason. Belgrade is itself in accession talks, and the Serbian delegation heading to the EU-Western Balkans summit in Tivat on 5 June must craft a position that neither compromises Belgrade’s neutral stance nor publicly signals disagreement with the joint action of EU member states.
Foreign Minister Marko Djuric offered a formulation on Tuesday that preserves the line held since February 2022:
Serbia is following the humanitarian dimension of support for Ukraine and is contributing within its capabilities.
In her address to the Council, Kallas broke the package into three components:
- €2.3 billion for additional Patriot air defence systems, manufactured in the United States and procured by the EU through its joint-purchasing mechanism
- €1.8 billion for IRIS-T systems produced by Germany’s Diehl, with deliveries scheduled for the third quarter of 2026
- €900 million for medium-range missiles for NASAMS systems, which are already in operational use along the front
Three concrete steps from Berlin
The Bundeswehr’s first decision, taken on Wednesday evening, was to redeploy an additional Patriot system from Germany’s active defensive formation to Ukraine. The German defence industry and the Chancellery confirmed the move in parallel. The system is to be operational with German instructors by the end of June, according to the Bundeswehr briefing.
The second decision is to ramp up production capacity at Rheinmetall. Its plant in Unterluss, which manufactures 155-millimetre munitions, is lifting capacity from 700,000 to 1.1 million rounds a year by the end of 2026.
The third decision is the opening of a new depot for Ukrainian units in Dresden, which will serve as an operational base for maintaining the air defence systems being delivered. The decision is the result of a compromise between the Bundeswehr and the regional government in Saxony, which had earlier voiced reservations about public opposition in some towns.
Washington coordinates but does not pay
Washington is coordinating the technical side of the deliveries but is not contributing financially. That is the pattern the Trump administration has framed as “European security from the European budget”.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that the United States “supports the package as a demonstration of European solidarity” but that Washington would not allocate additional funds for 2026 beyond programmes already confirmed.
Through the Commission and the cabinet of President von der Leyen, Brussels signalled on Tuesday that the package could be supplemented in Tivat. The political signal is that regional countries willing to contribute, particularly Montenegro, Albania and North Macedonia, can take part in the logistical side of the package via the joint-procurement mechanism. Serbia, which is not considering that step at this stage, remains outside the coordination.
What message does this package send to Moscow, that Brussels stands with Kyiv even as Washington reduces its own involvement, or that Brussels is trying to fill the vacuum left between the White House and the Kremlin?
