Defence Minister Pal Jonsson said Sweden would send a new military aid package worth 2.2 billion kronor (RM938 million) to Ukraine, consisting mainly of artillery ammunition.
Jonsson made the statement at a press conference that the armed forces would be looking into whether Sweden could send Jas Gripen fighter jets to Ukraine. However, he also confirmed that for internal security reasons, before Sweden can potentially commit fighter jets, it must become a NATO member.
The armed forces have until 6 November to report on the matter, Palson said. Sweden hopes to join the Nato defence alliance in the autumn after its entry was delayed by Turkey and Hungary.
Sweden applied to join NATO last year in response to the immediate aftermath of the fighting in Ukraine, and most alliance members quickly ratified its application.
However, Turkey and Hungary have yet to ratify Sweden’s application. Both countries said they were carefully coordinating their position on the issue. Hungary’s parliament will reconvene later, but the agenda is not yet fully known.
The new military aid package will be the 14th since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022, bringing the total amount of such aid to the Scandinavian country to just over 22 billion kronor.
The summit in the Spanish city of Granada will give leading European politicians such as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak a chance to reiterate their support for Kyiv after the US and Europe’s confidence in supporting Ukraine was shaken. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky yesterday said he remained confident of continued financial assistance from the US and Europe.
