European Union defence and foreign ministers gathering in Ireland this week are set to focus on strengthening Ukraine’s air defences, as concern grows over both Russia’s intensifying bombardment and what European officials see as a widening campaign of destabilisation across the continent.
Defence ministers are meeting in County Wicklow, south of Dublin, on Tuesday, followed by talks between EU foreign ministers on Wednesday, with Ukraine’s new acting defence minister Yevgeniy Khmara expected to take part in the discussions.