FRANCE, GERMANY, AND ITALY have circumvented an arms embargo to transfer weaponry to Vladimir Putin, who is slaughtering Ukrainians.
On a day of embarrassment for the EU, it was revealed that 10 EU member nations sold Russia hundreds of millions of pounds worth of military equipment between 2015 and 2020.
Bombs, rockets, and explosives were transported from Paris, along with thermal imaging cameras for 1,000 tanks and infrared detectors for planes.
Berlin sold “dual-use equipment,” such as weapons, “special protection” vehicles, and icebreaker vessels, while Rome supplied armored cars.
In 2014, EU member states, including then-member Britain, imposed a weapons embargo on Russia in response to its invasion of Crimea.
However, a loophole permitted countries and businesses to complete contracts with Russia that they had previously inked.
Following the restriction, the EU27 nations awarded over 1,000 licenses, according to an investigation by Investigate Europe.
Following that, France sold £130 million worth of military equipment to the Kremlin, Germany made £100 million, and Italy made £19 million.
In 2015, Rome approved the sale to Moscow of Lynce military all-terrain vehicles, which have been observed in Ukraine since the conflict began, according to Italian television channel La7.
Despite the EU’s ban on weapon sales, the investigative website Disclose alleges that France gave 76 military export licenses to Russia between 2015 and 2020.
According to an investigation by Investigate Europe, 10 EU member states continued to supply weapons to Russia after the embargo was lifted, including Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Finland, Slovakia, and Spain.
According to data from the EU Council Working Party on Conventional Arms Exports, 10 EU countries supplied military equipment to Russia totaling £291 million between 2015 and 2020.
France is said to have contributed for 44% of sales out of the ten, with airplanes, navigation systems, torpedoes, and missiles among the items provided.
Pressure forced French President François Hollande to abandon plans to sell two Mistral-class amphibious assault ships to Russia in 2015, but subsequent French governments exploited the loophole.
After the embargo was enforced, Britain shipped weaponry to Russia, but only for £1.7 million.
After avoiding the Russian arms embargo, Germany was chastised by Kyiv’s mayor for agreeing to deliver 5,000 helmets to aid Ukrainian forces fighting Putin’s forces.
Vitali Klitschko, a former boxer turned politician, mocked the suggestion, asking whether the country would rather send pillows instead of weapons because Berlin refused to give weaponry to Ukraine.
However, just days after the invasion, Germany caved to pressure and altered its long-standing policy of not sending weapons to conflict zones, offering Ukraine 1,000 anti-tank weaponry and 500 Stinger anti-aircraft defense systems.
Meanwhile, as Putin’s assault of Ukraine grinds to a halt, the United States estimates that 30,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or injured.
As Russian forces continue to bomb key cities, Volodymyr Zelensky has pleaded with European politicians to supply additional weaponry to assist Ukrainians in their persistent defense of their homeland.
On Tuesday, the valiant commander begged Joint Expeditionary Force officials to “help themselves by helping us” by deploying more equipment.
“We are all targets of Russia, and if Ukraine does not stand, everything will go against Europe, so I would like to beg you to protect yourself by helping us,” Zelensky stated.
“You are aware of the weapons we require. You are aware of the types of defenses we require. You are aware that we require fighter jets, and without your help, it would be extremely difficult.
“‘We’d like you to assist us, and I’m hoping you would.’
According to Zelensky, shipments of supplies from European countries are swiftly depleted as Ukrainian forces put captured Russian weapons and machinery to use.
It comes as Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has asked Washington and NATO partners to enforce a no-fly zone to prevent “Russia from terrorizing our free towns.”
He spoke directly to Joe Biden, saying: “I want you to be the world’s leader. Becoming the world’s leader entails being the world’s peacemaker.”
Biden and Nato have opposed Zelensky’s calls for military action against Russia, saying that it could result in a third World War.
But, in addition to the £10.3 billion in military and humanitarian aid already approved, US President Donald Trump revealed his latest package of help to Ukraine this week.
Long-range missile defense and Switchblade armed drones will be provided by the US, allowing Kyiv’s soldiers to better protect against Russian aircraft from afar.
In addition, the West has increased the number of deadly weaponry it is sending to Ukraine, including Bayraktar TB2 drones, Stinger missiles, and portable anti-tank weapons.
It comes as Putin’s forces intensify their attack on key towns, with new missile strikes and shelling on the outskirts of Kyiv and Lviv in western Ukraine.
After a strike early Friday, black smoke billowed outside Lviv for hours, according to the mayor, which damaged a facility for repairing military aircraft near the city’s international airport as well as a bus repair facility.
Early morning shelling also rocked the capital’s northern outskirts, with at least one person dead, according to emergency services, in Podil, a neighborhood just north of central Kyiv.
Meanwhile, Mariupol is being demolished by a squadron of 25 Russian bombers that fly sorties over the city every day, destroying or damaging 90% of the city’s buildings.
Around 14,000 Russian special forces surround the city, with many of the 400,000 civilians — who have been without power and running water for the 17th day – sipping from puddles to stay alive.
