News item | 18-02-2022 | 14:00
The Netherlands plans to supply military goods to Ukraine. That is what the Council of Ministers decided today. With this decision, the cabinet is responding to Ukraine’s request for military support in light of the threat at the Ukrainian-Russian border.
It concerns 3000 combat helmets and 2000 fragmentation vests with accompanying armor plates, thirty metal detectors and two wire-guided detection robots for (sea) mine detection, two battlefield surveillance radars and five weapon location radars, and one hundred sniper rifles with 30,000 pieces of ammunition.
Minister Hoekstra: “The core of the government’s efforts continues to be aimed at de-escalating the situation through dialogue and diplomacy. Because the prevention of war remains the highest priority. At the same time, Ukraine must be able to defend itself against a possible Russian armed attack on its own territory. That is why the cabinet has decided to supply these military goods to Ukraine.” This decision comes on top of the political, financial and military support that the Netherlands already provides, both bilaterally and in the EU and NATO context.
The Ministry of Defense has made an inventory of military goods that can be delivered to the country on the basis of Ukraine’s request. This list was then carefully checked by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs against the eight criteria of the EU Common Position on arms export criteria. On that basis, the Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation has granted Schreinemacher the permit.
“The Netherlands supports Ukraine on many fronts and, like a number of other partners, will also supply military goods. We do this out of solidarity and as part of a broader package together with the EU and NATO allies,” explains Minister Ollongren.
The combat helmets and fragmentation vests are intended for personal protection of vital body parts. The metal detectors can detect mines, improvised explosive devices and weapons lying underground. The wire-guided robots are used to detect naval mines. The weapon location radars are used to detect the location of enemy artillery in the event of incoming fire and calculate the expected location of impact, so that friendly troops can be warned and defend themselves accurately. With the sniper rifles, military targets can be hit with precision at great distances.
Ukraine is not a NATO member. Therefore, no Dutch military personnel will be deployed in Ukraine for combat actions. Some of these military goods do require training for their use. These will be given outside Ukraine.
Due to the tense security situation on the eastern flank, NATO must be able to react quickly to new developments. NATO has therefore increased the readiness of the NATO Response Force, NATO’s rapid reaction force. Minister Ollongren: “In this way NATO is prepared for all possible scenarios in defense of the alliance. This also means that the readiness of parts of the armed forces in the Netherlands will be increased”.