Australia and New Zealand became the first non-NATO members to make contributions to the alliance’s Prioritised Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative, through which allies and partners of Ukraine can make purchases of American military equipment and weapons for Kyiv’s forces as they fend off the Russian invasion.
Under PURL, NATO commanders identify critical U.S. defense equipment that Ukraine needs, but Europe cannot provide alone, and coordinate the purchase and delivery of it to Kyiv’s armed forces. So far, NATO allies have made more than $2 billion in purchases through PURL. It was also designed to more broadly share the financial burden of supporting Ukraine beyond the U.S.
The Australian defense ministry said it would contribute $33 million to Ukraine through PURL as part of a bigger $62.3 million package of support for Ukraine, which includes tactical air defence radars, munitions and combat engineering equipment. It is also sanctioning 45 vessels used in Russia’s sanctions-dodging “shadow fleet”. New Zealand is giving $8 million.
Richard Marles, the Australian deputy prime minister, said Australia is “unwavering in its support for Ukraine”.
“These commitments will make a tangible difference in Ukraine’s defence against Russia’s illegal and immoral invasion,” he said in a statement. “We are proud to be contributing to PURL, standing in solidarity with our partners–in NATO and the Indo-Pacific–to see a just and lasting peace for Ukraine.”
New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Winston Peters said Ukraine’s defense “has significant implications not only for the security of Europe, but also for the Indo-Pacific”.
