Italian Parliament Approves Military Aid to Ukraine for 2024
The Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Parliament has finally endorsed the government's decision to provide military assistance to Ukraine in 2024, ANSA reports.
218 out of 400 members of the lower house of the Italian Parliament voted in favour of this decision.
Previously, the decree of the Italian government regarding military assistance to Ukraine in 2024 received support from the Italian Senate. Therefore, with the decision of the Chamber of Deputies, this document has come into effect, allowing the Italian government to continue military support to Ukraine.
Specifically, the Italian government will be able to transfer military assets to Kyiv until at least December 31, 2024, in accordance with Italy's international obligations regarding assistance to Ukraine in countering Russian aggression. This includes weaponry, transport vehicles, and material-technical means, although specific figures of aid volumes are not specified.
"The continuation of the Russian-Ukrainian war in the face of a complex international situation, exacerbated by the crisis in the Middle East and the war between Israel and Hamas, requires the government of Giorgia Meloni to choose consistency and support, and therefore, to continue assistance to Ukraine, in accordance with the international commitments undertaken by Italy in the EU and NATO," said Italian Minister of Defence Guido Crosetto.
It is worth noting that the decision to provide military assistance to Ukraine was made by the previous government of Italy under the leadership of Mario Draghi. After the arrival of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in the fall of 2022, her Cabinet decided to extend these powers until 2023.
Recall that at the end of December last year, The Gaze reported that security and defence remain an unconditional priority for the Ukrainian government, constituting the main part of the country's state budget expenditures.
In particular, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine announced that for the first 11 months of 2023, expenditures from the general fund of the state budget on the security and defence sector amounted to 1,559.4 billion hryvnias (approximately 37.15 billion euros), which is 59.2% of the total expenditure volume from the general fund.
In the Ukrainian government, it was then noted that an important component of Ukraine's defence capability remains external military assistance provided by most NATO countries, including the United States, Germany, Finland, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Lithuania, and others.