The Netherlands has allocated an additional EUR1 billion in military aid and EUR400 million for reconstruction to Ukraine in addition to the commitments under the bilateral security agreement, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said after a phone conversation with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
“In a telephone conversation, Prime Minister Mark Rutte has just announced that the Netherlands has allocated another EUR 1 billion for military assistance to Ukraine and EUR 400 million for reconstruction. This is in addition to the obligations under our bilateral security agreement,” Zelenskyy wrote on his Telegram channel.
The Head of State expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister and all the people of the Netherlands.
According to him, during the conversation, they also discussed joint work with partners to accelerate the supply of artillery shells, ammunition and air defense systems.
” I thanked him for the effective Justice for Ukraine conference in The Hague and the launch of the Register of Damages as a result of it. He spoke about the preparations for the Peace Summit in Switzerland and invited the Netherlands to join. We also discussed the necessary efforts to ensure that this event is supported by as many countries as possible,” Zelenskyy wrote.
For his part, Rutte said that his country would provide Ukraine with additional military assistance worth EUR1 billion in 2024 and allocate EUR3 billion in defense support for 2025.
“The Netherlands will provide an additional EUR1 billion in military support this year. This is in addition to the EUR2 billion already approved by the authorities. We have also decided that we will allocate EUR3 billion for military support for the next year,” Rutte wrote on social network X.
In addition, according to the Prime Minister, the Netherlands is using EUR400 million “to support the Ukrainian economy and repair vital energy infrastructure.”
Rutte reminded that the Netherlands continues to make efforts to deliver more ammunition and air defense equipment to Ukraine faster, together with international partners, including Denmark and the Czech Republic.
In early March, the Netherlands signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement with Ukraine. According to Rutte, his country will provide Ukraine with assistance and support “across the entire spectrum of defense cooperation, as well as in the areas of reconstruction, sanctions support, and the fight for justice.”
Israel has postponed the start of a ground military operation in the Gaza Strip for several days, partly due to the weather, The New York Times (NYT) reports, citing sources in the Israeli Defense Forces.
“The invasion was originally planned for the weekend, the officers said, but was postponed for several days, at least in part because of weather conditions that would make it difficult for Israeli pilots and drone operators to provide air cover for ground troops,” the publication says.
The NYT writes that the military confirmed that reconnaissance teams briefly entered the Gaza Strip on Friday and that Israeli troops are increasing their “readiness” for a ground war.
It is believed that tens of thousands of Hamas militants are holed up in hundreds of kilometers of underground tunnels and bunkers under Gaza City and adjacent areas of the northern part. Israeli military leaders expect Hamas to try to impede their advance by blowing up some of these tunnels as the Israelis advance over them, as well as by detonating roadside bombs and mining buildings.
The NYT quoted three Israeli officers who provided some details about Israeli military preparations. In particular, “to facilitate the actions of Israeli soldiers, rules of engagement have been relaxed, allowing soldiers to conduct fewer checks before firing at perceived enemies.”
Also, the NYT writes, due to the widespread destruction in the Gaza Strip caused by recent Israeli air strikes, Israeli soldiers have received additional training in recent days to help them fight in the devastated urban environment.
Ukrainian military in six months opened in the state-owned PrivatBank (Kiev) special deposits “Glory to heroes” for 2 billion UAH, and in Oschadbank deposits “My defender” – for 12.9 billion UAH, according to press services of the banks.
According to the head of Oshchadbank Sergei Naumov, since the beginning of the year the amount of deposits on special deposits increased by 30%.
Oschadbank offers increased interest rates on this deposit in the amount of 13% per annum (for deposits for a period of three months) and 14% per annum (for a period of six months).
Monthly payment of interest, replenishment, rollover and changing the date of deposit return before the end of the contract without loss of accrued interest is provided on the deposit. The minimum deposit amount is 5000 UAH.
Except for servicemen, volunteers of Armed Forces of Ukraine and Territorial Defense members of their families (spouse, husband, parents or children) can open a deposit in the branches of Oschadbank on presentation of supporting documents.
The deposit “Glory to Heroes” from PrivatBank gives the opportunity to get 14% per annum for servicemen, who receive target payments from the state through PrivatBank.
DTEK Energy Holding within the framework of Rinat Akhmetov’s Steel Front initiative in February-September this year supplied Ukrainian military and medics with over UAH 250 million worth of free electricity.
“Overall, medical and military institutions in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk and Donetsk regions received 45.15 million kWh of electricity. This allowed the state budget to save 250 million UAH and direct these funds to the urgent needs of the defense,” the holding said in a release on Friday.
According to it, more than 100 state and municipal medical institutions, as well as military and security agencies are provided with free electricity.
In particular, electricity is provided to Dnipropetrovsk Regional Clinical Hospital named after I.I. Mechnikov, Dnipropetrovsk Regional Children’s Clinical Hospital, Kyiv City Clinical Hospital № 8, and others.
DTEK’s press service clarified to Energoreform that supplies of free electricity continue.
The company noted that since the beginning of the war, SCM businesses, which includes DTEK, have sent more than UAH 3 billion to help Ukraine and Ukrainians, including as part of the Rinat Akhmetov Steel Front military initiative, in particular, over 150,000 bulletproof vests, over two thousand drones and radios, 700 cars, 0.5 million liters of fuel and others were made and transferred.
The third field hospital for the treatment of military and displaced persons has been deployed on the territory of Lviv region, the press service of Lviv Regional Military Administration has reported.
“The mobile medical facility is designed for 50 beds and it was transferred to Ukraine by decision of the government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands,” the Administration said.
The hospital includes: an operating room, resuscitation beds, an intensive care unit, an X-ray diagnostics unit, a clinical laboratory with a blood bank, and an oxygen concentrator. The hospital is also equipped with an air filtration and purification system.
As stated in the message of Lviv Regional Military Administration, the hospital can work offline on a diesel generator, and with stocks of medicines and consumables for full load operation for a year.
At present, the formation of a staff of specialists continues. The hospital will employ doctors who have left the front-line areas, as well as doctors from Canada and the United States.
“Now they are staffing the hospital, and in connection with this, they have not yet started accepting patients,” Head of Lviv Regional Military Administration Maksym Kozytsky said.
This is the third field hospital deployed on the territory of Lviv region since the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
DISPLACED, FIELD HOSPITAL, LVIV REGION, MILITARY, PERSONS DEPLOYED, TREATMENT
On Monday, September 20, on the basis of the International Center for Peacekeeping and Security of the National Academy of Ground Forces named after Hetman Petro Sahaidachny, the joint Ukrainian-US military exercises Rapid Trident-2021 will begin.
“The Ukrainian-US military exercises Rapid Trident-2021 will last from September 20 to October 1, 2021. The main goal is to prepare for joint actions as part of the multinational forces during coalition operations,” the press service of the Ground Forces Command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported on Thursday.
It is noted that these exercises are an important step for Ukraine on the way to NATO, they should increase the level of training and efficiency of Ukrainian troops, as well as improve the compatibility of the headquarters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the United States and other NATO members and partner states.
“Some 6,000 servicemen from fifteen partner countries will take part in the exercises,” the message says.
It clarifies that for the first time in the history of Rapid Trident, tactical exercises of a multinational battalion with live fire will be carried out. Also, during the exercise, it is planned to jointly land Ukrainian and American paratroopers from the US military transport aircraft C-130.
