Sánchez is committed to "accelerating" arms shipments to Ukraine and supports the joint purchase of ammunition by the EU

He hopes that Sweden and Finland can complete their integration into NATO before the month of July

MADRID, 3 Mar. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, believes that "the most important thing" to stop Russia's advance in Ukraine is to "accelerate" the shipment of weapons and has shown his support for the plan for the joint purchase of artillery ammunition by the EU.

"The most important thing is that we accelerate the arrival of military material and capabilities in Ukraine so that they can defend themselves on the ground," Sánchez assumed at a press conference in Finland together with his prime minister, Sanna Marin.

In this sense, he expressed his desire that the 27 endorse the plan proposed by the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Policy, Josep Borrell, at the next meeting of the European Council, to guarantee the supply of artillery ammunition to Ukraine, especially 155 caliber.

What "has to be made clear" to Russian President Vladimir Putin is the "total and resounding" unity of the members of the European Union and NATO in supporting Ukraine, he warned. "We will continue to support Ukraine until the last Russian soldier leaves the country," he guaranteed.

As he explained, it is about defending "an international order based on rules", one of whose pillars is the territorial integrity of countries, in this case Ukraine, which Spain will continue to support by sending military material, aid financial and also humanitarian.

Within this framework, Sánchez has supported the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO, which he hopes will materialize before the next Summit of the Atlantic Alliance in Vilnius (Lithuania) next July. As he recalled, both countries reached an agreement with Turkey at the Madrid Summit and he hopes that this will be formalized as soon as possible to make NATO a "much stronger" space.

In addition, he thanked the Finnish Prime Minister for the "so relevant" step taken by his country to join the Atlantic Alliance, from "empathy" towards the historical particularities "of each country. Sánchez's visit has also coincided with the approval of NATO membership by the Finnish Parliament.

With this, Sánchez has resorted to a Finnish term, the 'sisu', which defines "perseverance and determination to grow in the face of the greatest challenges". "I want to show Spain's clear admiration for Finland for having taken such an important step as requesting adhesion to the Atlantic Alliance and aligning itself in the defense of freedom, democracy and justice", he congratulated.