EU leaders discuss 'drone wall', Ukraine in Copenhagen to counter Russia

Oslo, Oct 2 (IANS) European Union (EU) leaders held an informal summit in Copenhagen, discussing issues including the advancement of an EU-wide "drone wall" and continued support for Ukraine, according to remarks made at a late-evening press conference.

During the informal meeting on Wednesday (local time), European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the Commission had been given the green light to continue work on the "drone wall" and a rearmament roadmap.

She described the "drone wall" as an anti-drone system designed to "quickly detect, intercept and, if necessary, neutralise drones."

European Council President Antonio Costa said leaders had discussed continued support for Ukraine, adding that the conversation would continue at the next European Council meeting in October, reports Xinhua news agency.

Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen called funding for Kiev an investment in the security of the EU.

The informal format meant no binding decisions were expected, though EU institutions and national capitals indicated work would continue on defence initiatives and Ukraine support ahead of the October summit.

The European leaders stayed in Copenhagen for the European Political Community (EPC) summit on Thursday.

In the run-up to the summits, suspected drone activity disrupted flights at airports and triggered heightened security measures.

Additionally, earlier on Wednesday, Ukraine received 4 billion euros (about 4.7 billion US dollars) in a European Union loan sourced from frozen Russian assets, according to the country's Ministry of Finance.

The funds were transferred to Ukraine's state budget under the Group of Seven's Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration for Ukraine initiative, the ministry said.

The funds will be used to support Ukraine's social sector, defence needs and recovery efforts, it added.

On the same day, the Kremlin warned European leaders that Russia would pursue any individual or country involved in seizing its assets, cautioning that such moves would backfire on European depositories and investments.

"We are talking about plans for the illegal seizure of Russian property. In Russian, we call that simply theft," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

--IANS

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