The European union is setting a precedent. For the first time in its 65-year existence, the EU will be financing and organising the transfer of lethal weaponry to a country in conflict, in this case, Ukraine, to shore up its fight against Russia. This landmark decision is a product of a snap virtual meeting of EU foreign ministers on 27 February, the fourth in a week, as the EU lined up its increasingly crushing sanctions against Moscow and its political, military, and business elites.
This weapon project will be financed by the union’s European Peace Facility (EPF), whose EUR5 5 billion (USD5.6 billion) budget for 2021–27 is designed to help weak, faltering or failed states in Europe’s neighbouring regions.
