BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The EU will devote 500 million euros to boosting the production of ammunition for Ukraine and to replenish the stocks of EU member countries, it announced on Friday.

The European Council and European Parliament representatives struck a provisional agreement overnight and it is expected to enter into force before the end of this month.

Under the deal, subsidies will be given to European arms firms to increase their production capacities and tackle identified bottlenecks.

The scheme is the third part of a broader EU effort to get more ammunition and arms to Ukraine, particularly 155-millimetre artillery shells, which Kyiv is pleading for as the fight against Russia's invasion has become a war of attrition.

(Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout; Editing by Toby Chopra)