Defence and security links between Ukraine, NATO members and other allies and partners started soon after Ukraine’s independence in 1991. They intensified when Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, but primarily took the form of training and the bilateral provision of non-lethal military equipment.

Military assistance is stepped up

Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, bilateral military assistance has been significantly stepped up, with many allies supplying lethal weapons to Ukraine for the first time. For some countries such as Germany, and historically neutral countries such as Sweden, this has represented a significant reversal of their previous defence policies which ruled out providing offensive weapons.

As the conflict in Ukraine has evolved, so has the types of weaponry being provided. Ahead of the 2023 Ukrainian counteroffensive, the focus was on providing Ukraine with the capability to both defend their territory and to enable them to retake ground under Russian control. There were fears that the provision of increasingly more sophisticated weaponry could escalate the conflict.

Through winter, air defence and protection of Ukraine’s critical national infrastructure have once again been a priority. Allies have also increasingly turned their attention towards practical implementation of the long term security guarantees that were promised to Ukraine in July 2023. The continued provision of modern equipment, long term capability development and the strengthening of Ukraine’s defence industrial base as a means of achieving greater self-sufficiency in weapons production, are at the centre of those plans.

Concerns remain, however, over the ability to maintain solidarity among Western nations and secure future military assistance, in particular from the United States.

This briefing paper sets out the headline military commitments to Ukraine by its largely Western allies and partners, and any potential issues in terms of ongoing support. It does not examine the deployment of forces to the eastern flank of NATO, or wider humanitarian and economic support to Ukraine.

US military support to Ukraine

The US is the largest provider of military assistance to Ukraine. At the time of writing, the total level of security assistance provided by the US since the start of the Biden administration stood at $44.9 billion, $44.2 billion of which has been provided since February 2022. In December 2023, the US announced what would be its last package of assistance under previously authorised funding (PDF).

However, on 12 March 2024, the US administration announced that a $300 million package of extraordinary military assistance had been approved. That funding does not represent newly authorised funding by the US Congress but has been established from cost savings identified in earlier Ukraine weapons contracts.

An emergency bill to secure $60 billion of future funding for Ukraine is still being considered in Congress.

UK military assistance

The UK is one of the leading donors to Ukraine, alongside the US and Germany. The UK has pledged almost £12 billion in overall support to Ukraine since February 2022, of which £7.1 billion is for military assistance. £2.3 billion was provided in each of the financial years 2022/23 and 2023/24 and on 12 January 2024, the Government announced a further £2.5 billion of funding for 2024/25.

The UK is providing both lethal and non-lethal weaponry, including tanks, air defence systems and long-range precision strike missiles. While the UK has committed to training Ukrainian fast jet pilots, combat fighter aircraft will not be provided.

The UK is also hosting a training programme (Operation Interflex), which is supported by several allies. Over 30,000 Ukrainian personnel have been trained so far, with the aim of training a further 10,000 by mid-2024.

NATO and the EU

NATO, as an alliance, has been clear in its political support of Ukraine and fully supports the provision of bilateral military assistance by individual allies. NATO is helping to coordinate requests for assistance from the Ukrainian government and is supporting the delivery of humanitarian and non-lethal aid. Ukraine is not a NATO member, however, and therefore isn’t party to NATO’s mutual defence clause under Article V of the North Atlantic Treaty. As such, NATO troops will not be deployed on the ground in Ukraine. Allies have also ruled out imposing a no-fly zone over Ukraine because it would bring Russia into direct conflict with NATO forces. At the Heads of State and Government summit in Madrid at the end of June 2022 NATO allies agreed a new package of assistance for Ukraine that will provide long term, sustained, support. That multi-year programme was subsequently adopted at the Vilnius Summit in July 2023.

The European Union is also providing non-lethal and lethal arms and training through its European Peace Facility (EPF). This is the first time the bloc has, in its history, approved the supply of lethal weapons to a third country. To date, the EU has committed €11.1 billion of EPF funding for military support to Ukraine, including €5 billion for a dedicated Ukraine Assistance Fund which was agreed in March 2024. Reaching agreement on that fund has taken several months amid disagreements on the size of the fund and how it should operate.

Comparative data  

This paper does not attempt to rank countries in terms of the military assistance they are providing to Ukraine or to make comparisons between individual countries and/ or the US and Europe.

Comparative data on the level of assistance being provided to Ukraine is available from organisations such as the Kiehl Institute through its Ukraine Support Tracker.

However, such figures discuss assistance through a broad lens and include economic, financial and humanitarian assistance as well as military aid. They also include future commitments, which in some cases have been made to 2026/27 and do not just reflect assistance provided, or funds spent, to date. On this basis, the Kiehl Institute has reported that European assistance to Ukraine is far greater than that provided by the US. However, as the Institute itself acknowledges in its 16 February 2024 update, there is a significant gap between European funding that has been committed and funding that has actually been allocated or spent and that to fully replace US military assistance in 2024, Europe would need to double its current level of arms assistance.

Making comparisons is also complicated by the fact that many countries do not publish information on a consistent basis, and it is unclear where the distinction between certain sorts of assistance, such as mine clearance or non-lethal aid, may lie.

 

https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9477/

 

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UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing a backlash and accusations of cronyism for his decision to confer a knighthood on one of the Conservative Party’s biggest donors, who has contributed millions of pounds.

Sunak announced his ‘Easter Honours List’ on Thursday, a step many viewed as unusual as it was made outside of the traditional honors rounds, which are granted at New Year’s or the King’s Birthday.  

The list, which included a number of Conservative MPs, several figures involved in working on artificial intelligence and Oscar-winning film director Christopher Nolan, also featured Egyptian-born billionaire Mohamed Mansour. 

Mansour, who has served as senior treasurer of the Conservative Party since 2022, is a vocal supporter of the prime minister. Last year, he gave £5 million ($6.3 million) to the Conservatives, the single largest donation they had received in over two decades. Mansour’s knighthood was awarded for “business, charity and political service.”

However, the billionaire’s newly-minted title has raised eyebrows among UK political figures, with some accusing Sunak of blatant “cronyism.”

“The nation is sick of the Tories and their obscene cronyism. Bung them a few million quid and a peerage or knighthood is yours. The whole thing stinks like a rotting fish, from the head,” Reform UK leader Richard Tice told The Telegraph. 

Labour Party chairman Anneliese Dodds voiced a similar opinion, telling Sky News it showed “a blatant disrespect for the office [that Sunak] should feel privileged to hold,” adding that giving money should not be an “automatic pass” to knighthood.

Conservative peer Lord Robert Haywood also warned that the public would be “unhappy” with Sunak’s move. “The problem is that you’ve got people who are genuine philanthropists who also give money to a political party, and that’s where the line isn’t differentiated,” he said.

The Telegraph noted that the “highly unusual” decision to award honors before the Easter recess will likely fuel speculation that the prime minister may call a summer snap election, with the knighthoods seen as an attempt to boost support for his party. 

https://www.rt.com/news/595129-sunak-criticism-knighthood-party-donor/

 

 

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