Hundreds of Lithuanians raise funds to purchase an advanced military drone to help Ukraine defend itself against continued attacks by Russia.
Lithuanians pitched in to generate five million euros ($4.7 million) within three and a half days. The amount was used to purchase a Byraktar TB2 military drone. Laisves TV, the Lithuanian internet broadcaster, launched the fundraising campaign, as per Reuters.
Agne Belickaite, 32, donated 100 euros when the fundraising launched on Wednesday. She said that before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, none of them considered buying weapons. However, it became "normal" since Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the attack on Ukraine in February.
"Something must be done for the world to get better," she said.
The drone has proven effective against Russian forces and their allies in Syria and Libya in recent years, and its procurement is being coordinated by Lithuania's Ministry of Defense, which plans to sign a letter of intent to buy the craft from Turkey next week.
Unbelievable Effort From Lithuanians
The Turkish Bayraktar TB2 unmanned aerial warfare drones are armed with precision missiles that can strike out any encroaching armor, according to The Independent.
"Novel, unexpected fundraisers fire people up again. It's the third month of the invasion... it's important to avoid getting used to it," Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said in an interview with Laisves TV.
According to Ukraine's Ambassador to Lithuania, Beshta Petro, it was the "first case in history" when ordinary civilians contributed funds to purchase a sophisticated weapon. He described the Lithuanians' efforts as "unprecedented, it is unbelievable."
In recent years, Ukraine has purchased more than 20 Bayraktar TB2 armed drones from the Turkish company Baykar, with another 16 being ordered on January 27. The batch arrived in the Eastern European country in early March.
Zelensky Calls Russia To Unblock Seaports To End Food Crisis
Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged Russia to unblock Ukraine's seaports to end a global "food crisis" while speaking at the Foreign Policy Community of Indonesia think tank Friday, as reported by ABC News.
Ukraine's Head of State stated that Russia "has blocked access" to the country's ports in the Black Sea and seized the country's territory in the Sea of Azov.
"As a result of this military blockade, most traditional Ukrainian trade routes have been closed," said Zelensky. He estimated that Ukraine's storage facilities currently hold 22 million tons of grain.
"We cannot direct them to the world market, where they are needed right now, at this time," Zelensky remarked.
According to The President, the block has already impacted grain prices and will soon affect other food prices. Many countries, he projected, would run out of last year's harvest stockpiles by July. Thus, Zelensky urges Russia to open Ukraine's ports as soon as possible to avoid a deepening of the global food crisis.
"The sooner our ports are unblocked, the sooner the food crisis will stop, because we will be able to send our stocks and new crops to the world market," Zelensky noted.
As per an NBC News report, Ukraine and Russia export a third of the world's wheat and barley, consumed by millions of people in the Middle East and Africa.
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