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Italy to send latest package of military aid to Ukraine before G7 summit in June

According to the report, the aid package for Kiev, Italy's 9th, will include the delivery of a SAMP-T air defense system produced jointly with France

ROME, May 3. /TASS/. Italy will provide another military aid package to Ukraine ahead of the G7 summit to be held in Apulia on June 13-15, La Repubblica reported, citing Italian officials.

According to them, the aid package for Kiev, Italy's 9th, will include the delivery of a SAMP-T air defense system produced jointly with France. From Rome's own stocks, the lone system it can send to Ukraine is currently in service in Slovakia. Apart from that, Italy has another four SAMP-T batteries, two of which will be used to ensure security ahead of the G7 summit, a third that is in reserve and a fourth that has been temporarily leased to Kuwait.

In January, the Italian parliament voted to extend more aid, including military, to Ukraine. And in late February Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni signed a bilateral security agreement. The Italian deal, which, like similar Western security agreements, was concluded for 10 years, envisaged providing "economic, diplomatic and military assistance" to Kiev, without saying how much money will be spent on that.

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