Spain to send weapons to Ukrainian forces

OVIEDO, Spain

In an about-face, Spain announced on Wednesday that it will directly send weapons to Ukrainian forces, now facing off against invading Russian forces in a nearly week-old war.

Madrid had previously ruled out the possibility of sending offensive weapons, putting them in the minority of EU nations, as 19 of the 27 had committed to directly arming Ukraine. The holdouts include Ireland, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Austria, but since the war began, members of the bloc have moving towards a more aggressive stance to help Ukraine.

Speaking to parliament on Wednesday, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the decision to send weapons aimed to “unite” Spain and show the country's commitment to Ukraine.

This move, however, opens another fissure in Spain’s progressive coalition government. The head of the junior coalition party Unidas Podemos criticized Sanchez's announcement, saying “it is not the most effective way to end the conflict as soon as possible.”

In a nearly one-hour address to parliament, Sanchez decried Russian aggression and pledged that Spain will defend the European values that have come under attack.

He said that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s justification for the invasion “brings us back to the times when Europe fell victim to authoritarian leaders, imperialist fantasies, and historic hallucinations, which we thought we had overcome on the continent.”

“His provocation is not only unacceptable, it is inexplicable. In a world with so many problems, so many challenges that require multilateral solutions, we are seeing tanks in Europe again,” he continued.

Overnight, Spain’s parliament was illuminated with the colors of the Ukrainian flag.

Since Russia's war on Ukraine began last Thursday, it has been met by outrage from the international community, with the EU, UK, and US implementing a range of economic sanctions on Russia.

So far, at least 136 civilians, including 13 children, have been killed in Ukraine and 400 others, including 26 children, injured, according to UN figures.