NATO approves plan to accelerate security assistance and training for the Ukrainian army

(Patria) - NATO defense ministers on Friday approved a plan to provide long-term security assistance and military training to Ukraine, AP reported.

Western supporters of Kyiv have largely concentrated their efforts through the Pentagon-led Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a forum of about 50 countries to collect the weapons and ammunition most needed by the war-torn country.

The new plan would represent a complementary effort. Announcing the move after chairing a meeting of defense ministers in Brussels, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the headquarters for the effort would be at the U.S. military base in Wiesbaden, Germany, and would involve nearly 700 people.

He said it would help organize the training of Ukrainian military personnel in alliance member countries, coordinate and plan donations of equipment needed by Kyiv, and manage the transfer and repair of that military equipment.

Stoltenberg expressed hope that U.S. President Joe Biden and his colleagues will agree at the July 9-11 summit in Washington to maintain the level of funding for military support they have provided to Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion in February 2022. He estimates it at about 40 billion euros worth of equipment each year.

"We don't have an agreement on that yet," he told reporters after the meeting on Friday.