July and August were the deadliest months for Ukrainian civilians since Russia’s full-scale invasion began, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told the European Parliament.
Russia is “killing civilians from the skies” while its ground forces are “bogged down”, Kallas said in a statement delivered in Strasbourg on Tuesday, and cited on Wednesday by the European External Action Service.
Around 90 percent of Ukraine’s food storage infrastructure has been destroyed in recent months, she said, adding that the EU is helping Ukraine increase its grain storage capacity.
The EU has made €75 million available this year for housing repairs, insulation and supplies including warm clothing, blankets, portable water stations and generators, with preparations for winter a priority after military support and air defence, she stated.
Kallas said Russia was expected to intensify attacks on Ukraine’s energy facilities over the coming winter.
Sanctions and funding for Ukraine
The EU has adopted 21 packages of sanctions covering more than 3,000 individuals and entities since the start of the war, with the most recent package adopted on 23 July and targeting Russia’s financial system, military-industrial complex and energy sector, Kallas said.
EU assistance to Ukraine has totalled more than €220 billion since the start of the war, including more than €78 billion in military support from the EU and its member states.
A Ukraine support loan will provide €90 billion over two years, with €60 billion planned for military assistance, and €8.35 billion already paid out including funding “destined for Patriot missiles”, she said — a reference to the US-made air defence systems used to intercept aircraft and missiles.
Kallas said she was working with member states to disburse a further €1 billion in military support using funding under the European Peace Facility, an EU mechanism used to finance security and defence assistance.
She also informed that she was mobilising support for an International Claims Commission and a Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine, and backed efforts to return deported Ukrainian children and secure the release of civilian detainees held by Russia.
