NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that allies in the bloc should continue to finance the purchase of artillery ammunition for Ukraine as part of the Czech initiative.
He said this during a joint press conference with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis in Prague on April 16.
Among other things, the head of the Alliance noted that this initiative “effectively” meets the needs of the Ukrainian military.
“Regarding Ukraine: I welcome the advancement of the Czech initiative on ammunition. It is having a real effect. More than 4 million ammunition has been delivered to Ukraine,” Rutte said.
He called on other allies in the bloc to continue funding the initiative so that Ukraine can receive ammunition to deter the Russian army.
Separately, Rutte recalled yesterday's meeting of the Contact Group on Defense Issues for Ukraine in the Ramstein format, welcoming new support packages for Ukraine announced by its members, including Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and Belgium – a country that announced new assistance of 1.1 billion euros.
“The missile and drone attacks on Ukraine show how ruthless Russia is. It continues to sow terror from the sky, killing and harming civilians. Ukraine needs our help to defend itself from Russia today, to be in a strong position to secure peace, and to support any future aggression,” Rutte stressed.
In February 2026, Czech President Petr Pavel stated that the ammunition initiative, which has already provided the Armed Forces of Ukraine with almost 4.4 million large-caliber ammunition, should be continued. In his opinion, there is no better alternative.