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Military operation in Ukraine

EU summit urges to provide air defense systems and all necessary military aid to Kiev

The document also says that the EU and its member states will step up humanitarian support and civil protection assistance to Ukraine

BRUSSELS, April 18. /TASS/. The heads of European states and governments, who gathered for an informal summit in Brussels on Wednesday, called for urgently sending air defense systems and all the required military assistance to Ukraine in their final joint statement.

"The European Council underlines the need to urgently provide air defense to Ukraine and to speed up and intensify the delivery of all the necessary military assistance, including artillery ammunition and missiles," the document says.

EU leaders called upon the Council to take measures necessary for achieving this goal. Progress on the issue is expected to be made during the upcoming meeting of EU defense and foreign ministers on April 22.

The document also says that the EU and its member states will step up humanitarian support and civil protection assistance to Ukraine.

The current two-day meeting in Brussels has the informal status, which means that it will not produce any practical decisions. The summit focuses on the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as on EU economic development.

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