Denmark and Germany have agreed to participate in the new format of arms supplies to Kyiv proposed by US President Donald Trump, while France, Italy, the Czech Republic, and Hungary have refused, Western media reported on Wednesday.
In addition, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday that Europe increasingly feels the need to end its dependence on US weapons.
“Europe is heavily dependent on the US defense industry. However, due to trade tariffs, President Trump’s attitude toward NATO and his lack of commitment to defending the alliance’s countries, European countries will increasingly prioritize investments in their own defense systems,” the agency’s sources said.
According to the European portal Politico, France has refused to participate in the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine. The publication’s sources said that instead, the government intends to focus on increasing its own defense budget, which President Emmanuel Macron promised last weekend to almost double by 2027 compared to the 2017 budget.
In addition, Paris wants to support European manufacturers who previously supplied Ukraine with anti-missile systems and other weapons.
Italy also has no plans to purchase weapons from the US for delivery to Ukraine, but will continue to provide military assistance to Kyiv. Unnamed representatives of the Ministry of Defense told the newspaper La Stampa that there had never been any talks about purchasing American weapons for Kyiv.
In addition, the newspaper notes that Italy does not have the funds to carry out operations of this kind. According to the newspaper’s sources, the problem is so acute that the only purchase from the US planned by Italy for the next ten years is a batch of F-35 fighter jets for its own needs.
The Czech government, in turn, said that military aid to Kyiv would continue, but through participation in other initiatives and purchases from Czech, not American, manufacturers.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said that Budapest does not intend to participate in the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine.
Berlin and Copenhagen have so far given their official consent to purchase weapons from the US. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Rasmussen said he was fully prepared to join the funding.
The Dutch Foreign Ministry, in turn, said it was considering participating in the program. However, despite the government’s positive assessment of the initiative, Amsterdam has not yet confirmed its commitment to direct participation.
According to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Sweden, Norway, and the United Kingdom are also expected to join the funding.
On July 11, Trump announced that US NATO allies would purchase weapons from Washington, which could then be transferred to Ukraine.
During a press conference with Trump on Monday, Rutte called it “logical” that European countries would pay for US arms deliveries to Ukraine.
European diplomacy chief Kaja Kallas said on Tuesday that EU countries would prefer Washington to provide part of its military aid to Ukraine free of charge. “If we pay for these weapons, it means that we, not the US, are providing this military aid,” Callas said at a press conference in Brussels. She stressed that Brussels “would like to see these costs shared.”
Ukrainian producers exported 66,700 tons of wheat flour during the 2024-2025 marketing year (July-June), which is 27.9% less than in the previous season, when this figure was 92,500 tons, according to the Ukrainian Flour Millers Association.
The industry association noted that about 46% of exports in the 2024/2025 season went to EU countries. The top five importers of Ukrainian flour were Moldova (20,300 tons), the Czech Republic (15,300 tons), Palestine (10,800 tons), France (3,000 tons), and Spain (2,900 tons).
Exports of other types of flour in the 2024/2025 season amounted to 4.6 thousand tons (in 2023/24 MY – 5.4 thousand tons). The share of EU countries in terms of export volumes was 14% (27% in 2023/2024 MY). The five countries to which other types of flour were supplied in 2024/25 MY were Moldova (3.2 thousand tons), Israel (0.5 thousand tons), Croatia (0.2 thousand tons), Bulgaria, and Spain (0.1 thousand tons each).
CZECH REPUBLIC, FLOUR, FRANCE, IMPORTER, MOLDOVA, PALESTINE, SPAIN
Czech arms manufacturer Excalibur Army has opened an office in Ukraine, according to the company’s press service.
“This step is aimed at strengthening local cooperation, optimizing logistics, and launching joint defense production on Ukrainian soil,” the statement said.
The company noted that as a member of the Czech-Slovak Group (CSG), Excalibur Army has played a decisive role in supplying weapons and military equipment to Ukraine since the first days of the conflict with the Russian Federation.
“We have delivered more than a thousand ground systems to Ukraine, including tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, artillery systems, and missile launchers, as well as more than two million large-caliber ammunition rounds. With the new office, our company aims to expand its presence and intensify cooperation with Ukrainian defense and industrial partners. Thanks to our cooperation with Ukrainian Armored Vehicles, we have already prepared a project for the local production of large-caliber ammunition,” the company said.
The Ukrainian office will handle orders, documentation, and technical consultations, which will significantly speed up response times and increase operational flexibility.
The Czech Republic has employed 160,000 Ukrainian refugees, according to Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala.
“The Czech Republic is the country that has accepted the most Ukrainian refugees per capita… Our decision has been successful, and we as a society have managed to overcome obstacles and further integrate refugees. Currently, 160,000 are working in our labor market,” Fiala said at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Prague on Monday.
According to him, proposals on the future of Ukrainian refugees “will depend on how the current situation develops.” At the same time, Fiala reminded that the current refugee protection program in the EU is valid until March 2026 and this deadline must be kept in mind.
According to updated UNHCR data, the number of Ukrainian refugees in Europe as of February 19, 2025, was estimated at 6.346 million, and worldwide at 6.907 million, which is 43,000 more than on January 16.
According to Eurostat, Germany remains by far the country with the largest number of refugees from Ukraine in the EU and the world, with 1,161,450 at the end of 2024, or 27.3% of the total number of beneficiaries in the EU. The top three also include Poland with 991,630, or 23.3%, and the Czech Republic with 388,630, or 9.1%.
The Czech Republic will take part in six public investment projects to modernize Ukrainian medical institutions.
According to the Ministry of Health, the European Commission has now agreed on projects to modernize the Lviv Regional Hospital for War Veterans and the Repressed, Rivne Regional Hospital for War Veterans, Volyn Regional Clinical Hospital, Kryvyi Rih City Hospital #5, Dnipro City Clinical Hospital #16, and Kyiv Regional Children’s Hospital.
The Ministry of Health notes that the Czech Republic is a member of the Ukraine Facility program and is potentially ready to finance the reconstruction and modernization of 13 hospitals in seven regions of Ukraine.
So far, Russians have damaged 1984 medical facilities and destroyed another 301. According to the World Bank, the reconstruction needs in Ukraine’s healthcare sector over the next 10 years amount to $19.4 billion.
Since the start of the full-scale war, the Czech Foreign Ministry has allocated EUR 4.3 million for medical equipment and machinery for Ukrainian hospitals, ambulances, buses, and communications equipment for medical units.
Join UP!, one of the leaders of the Ukrainian travel market, is opening a company in the Czech Republic, with an office in Prague, the company’s press service toldInterfax-Ukraine.
“Entering the Czech market is an important stage in the brand’s development. Although this is the ninth country where we have started working since the creation of Join UP! tour operator in 2010 in Ukraine, this story is not only about growth for us. Scaling the Join UP! travel experience to other markets also reflects our commitment to transforming the travel industry and encouraging people to travel, because we sincerely believe that travel is not just entertainment, but also a way to take care of yourself and your loved ones, to live every day of your life to the fullest, despite all the challenges of recent years,” comments Alina Alba, co-founder of Join UP! Alina Alba, co-founder of Join UP!
It is reported that the new tour operator will soon present a summer selection of its top destinations to the Czech market. Among them are direct flights from Prague to Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt, as well as to the Mediterranean resorts of Greece, Turkey, and Cyprus. It is also noted that from Katowice, Poland, the tour operator offers flights to Egypt, the Dominican Republic, Greece, Turkey, Tunisia, Bulgaria, Spain, Montenegro, and Cyprus. Such a flight program opens up additional opportunities for our compatriots to spend their holidays in the Czech Republic. In particular, from Ostrava, where there are many Ukrainians, it is an hour’s drive to Katowice, Poland, which is almost four times closer than Prague.
The Join UP! brand is developing on the principle of localism by combining a global strategy with the local cultural context. The brand’s international expansion already covers 8 markets: the Baltic States, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Poland, Romania, and the Czech Republic. Preparations for the launch in Slovakia and Hungary are nearing completion.
Also in Poland, in Katowice, in 2024, the brand opened the first franchise agency on the international market.
Join UP! LLC was established in 2013, with an authorized capital of UAH 72 million 671 thousand. The ultimate beneficiaries are Yuriy and Oleksandr Alba. In 2023, revenue increased to UAH 16 million 639 thousand, which is 2.3 times higher than in 2022.
