The US has not delivered war materials to Ukraine in months. Ukrainian soldiers are gradually running out of ammunition at the front. Europe should double its military aid to Ukraine to compensate for the loss of US supplies, according to a study.
The latest EU package for the country attacked by Russia secures the flow of financial aid, as the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW) announced on Friday. But the gap between EU commitments (€144 billion) and allocated resources (€77 billion) is still very large.
“To fully replace U.S. military assistance by 2024, Europe would need to double the current level and pace of arms assistance,” according to the Ukraine Support Tracker, which tracks aid through Jan. 15.
Is it all a matter of political will?
This is a challenge, but ultimately a matter of political will, said the head of the analysis team, Christoph Trebesch. “EU countries are among the richest in the world, and so far they have spent less than one percent of their economic output in 2021 supporting Ukraine.”
U.S. aid pledges and deliveries have largely stalled since late 2023 as a new aid package was blocked in Congress by former President Donald Trump’s Republicans. European aid, on the other hand, continues to increase, both in terms of pledges and “allocations” of weapons systems and other specific aid packages for delivery to Ukraine, the IfW said.
Accordingly, the total volume of financial aid allocated by the EU (EUR 34 billion) is comparable to the military aid allocated (EUR 35.2 billion). Current military aid continues to be provided by some major donors, such as the Nordic countries, Germany and Britain, while many other countries have promised or delivered little or nothing new.
Military aid slowed down
According to the information, Germany remains the largest European donor of military aid with a total amount of 17.7 billion euros since the outbreak of the war. Of this, EUR 9.4 billion was also allocated to specific military packages for Ukraine.
“With the formal approval of the EU aid package of 50 billion euros for Ukraine, financial assistance seems assured for the time being,” Trebesch said. “With regard to military aid, this is much less clear. The momentum of the EU has slowed down here.”
Source: Krone
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