A fundraising campaign by NGOs and LRT has collected 14 million euros to purchase multi-purpose tactical surveillance radars to monitor Ukraine’s airspace.
The announcement was made on Saturday after midnight, at the end of a benefit concert that concluded the nearly month-long Radarom! campaign.
“The unity of business companies and people was incredible,” said Andrius Tapinas, one of the hosts of the event and a co-organiser of the campaign.
“Now is the time that we can protect our freedom forever,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a televised message on Friday.
“At this crucial moment, we must do everything we can to make sure that the Ukrainian people feel that we have their back,” said Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda.
Radarom! was launched on January 30 and lasted for nearly for weeks, until the anniversary of the Russian invasion on February 24. People could donate by phone or online and several business companies made contributions. On Friday night, the furniture manufacturer Narbutas doubled donations raised over the course of 30 minutes, contributing some 0.5 million euros. At the end of the night, Teltonika, a network equipment manufacturer, pledged to add 10 percent to the final sum raised during the campaign, which amounted to over a million euros.
Radarom! was organised by Blue/Yellow, Laisvės TV, 1K Fondas, Stiprūs Kartu, and LRT.
“Radars are tasked with monitoring airspace. These new radars from Israel are unique in that they can detect all types, sizes and speeds of objects moving in the sky. Conventional radars are not designed to track small and low-flying objects. Russian missiles and drones pose a lethal threat to Ukrainian defenders and civilians. These radars will go a long way in preventing Russian death squads,” said Jonas Ohman, founder of Blue/Yellow.
Around 14 radars are to be purchased for the money raised during the campaign.
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