The Netherlands has allocated an additional 3.5 billion euros, a significant part of which will be directed to providing security assistance to Ukraine as early as 2025. F-16 from the Netherlands are already protecting Ukrainian skies, so the countries continue to increase the capabilities of the Air Force.
This was announced by the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Rustem Umerov following a meeting with the Minister of Defense of the Netherlands, Ruben Brekelmans.
The Head of the Ministry of Defense recalled that the Netherlands is a strategic partner that consistently supports Ukraine at all levels: political, diplomatic, and military.
"Among the key topics of the negotiations is strengthening security in the air and at sea. F-16 from the Netherlands are already protecting Ukrainian skies, and we continue to increase the capabilities of the Air Force. We focused separately on cooperation in the defense-industrial sector. The Netherlands supports the "Drone Line" project and invests in Ukrainian production," Umerov said.
He also invited Dutch companies to participate in joint projects in the defense industry. He added that Ukraine is ready to invest in partnership initiatives in the Netherlands.
"We discussed the digitalization of the Defense Forces. The Netherlands is an active participant in the IT coalition, which plays an important role in the transformation of our army. We also, together with our colleagues, informed the delegation about the security situation, the enemy's intentions, and Ukraine's defense strategy for 2025. Following the meeting, we signed a Letter of Intent to increase the effectiveness of cooperation in defense procurement - to strengthen our Defense Forces and better provide soldiers on the front line," the minister summarized.
As you know, in February , Ukraine received the promised F-16s from the Netherlands .