The Spanish government has decided to join a NATO-coordinated program called PURL, which aims to finance the purchase of American weapons for Ukraine. The decision comes amid Kyiv’s urgent need for weapons to protect against Russian attacks on energy infrastructure, reports the Spanish newspaper El País.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez discussed the issue during a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. In addition, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles held talks with her Ukrainian counterpart Denys Shmyhal. The Ukrainian side emphasized the need for the earliest possible supply of weapons on the eve of the winter period.
The PURL program was launched in August 2025 after US President Donald Trump refused to continue free arms supplies to Ukraine. In response, several NATO countries decided to voluntarily finance the purchase of American weapons for Kyiv. During August, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, Denmark, Norway and Sweden financed four packages worth about $2 billion, which included Patriot and HIMARS missiles. The Baltic countries, the Benelux countries, Finland and Iceland later joined the initiative.
Spain already supplies Ukraine with military equipment of its own production worth about €1 billion annually under an agreement concluded in May 2024. The PURL program provides for the financing of American weapons, which has caused concern, in particular in France.
The amount of Spain’s contribution has not yet been determined. Ukraine has requested that the total budget for PURL reach $3.5 billion by the end of October. Based on contributions from other countries, experts suggest that Spain’s share could be around 200 million euros. The move could help ease tensions between Madrid and Washington amid Donald Trump’s demands for increased Spanish defense spending.
