NATO-Ukraine Council Meets; Kyiv Seeks More Weapons Amid EU & US Delays

The NATO-Ukraine Council meets for the first time this year in Brussels today, with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba seeking to impress upon the NATO ambassadors Kyiv's need for an increase in provision in weaponry that will allow Ukraine to fend off Russian aerial attacks on its cities, which haveramped up significantly in recent weeks. The end to the 'fighting season' between Ukrainian and Russian forces that came as winter closed in has seen Russia revert to mass bombardment of Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Lviv, with Iranian-made drones, ballistic and hypersonic missiles.

• Kuleba: "Ensuring regular supplies of missiles for Patriots, IRIS-T, NASAMS, and other systems is a top priority that must be completed today, not tomorrow. Furthermore, the more successful Ukraine's air defense, the less likely it is that a Russian missile or drone will accidentally fly into bordering NATO airspace,"
• The longer-term outlook for provision of financial and military aid to Ukraine remains downbeat. There is little sign of US President Joe Biden's USD106bn supplemental aid bill that includes USD60bn for Ukraine passing Congress any time soon, certainly in its current form. There is also no guarantee the EU will be able to agree on EUR50bn in long-term Ukraine funding at its special EUCO meeting on 1 Feb, due to long-standing Hungarian objections.