Military Assistance To Ukraine Since The Russian Invasion From UK And Other Countries
28th September 2024
What weapons and other military support have been given to Ukraine by the UK, the US and its allies and partners since Russia invaded the country in February 2022?
This report is from the House of Commons library.
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. There have been fears that the provision of increasingly more sophisticated weaponry could escalate the conflict.
Air defence remains a priority, along with the supply of ammunition and long-range strike capabilities. Delays in assistance are considered by NATO to have impacted Ukraine's ability to defend its lines and Russian forces have subsequently made tactical gains in eastern Ukraine.
Several countries, including the UK, have said that weapons donated to Ukraine could be used, in self-defence, to strike legitimate military targets inside Russia. Those permissions do not extend, however, to the use of Western-supplied long-range missiles against targets deep in Russian territory, although that operational caveat is currently under review. In response, in May 2024 Russia accused NATO and the US of "provoking a new level of tension" and in September 2024 President Putin said the use of long range missiles against Russian targets was a ‘red line' that would amount to direct NATO participation in the conflict.
Allies have also increasingly turned their attention towards practical implementation of the long term security guarantees that were promised to Ukraine in July 2023. At the centre of those plans is the continued provision of modern equipment, long term capability development, and the strengthening of Ukraine's defence industrial base in order to achieve greater self-sufficiency in weapons production.
This briefing paper sets out the headline military commitments to Ukraine by its main 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 military assistance provided by the US since the start of the Biden administration stands at $56.6 billion (PDF). $55.9 billion of that funding had been provided since February 2022.
The latest levels of funding reflect several new substantial packages of assistance announced by the US administration after Congress approved a $60.8 billion funding package for Ukraine towards the end of April 2024, after several months of delay.
UK military assistance
The UK is one of the leading donors to Ukraine, alongside the US and Germany. To date, the UK has pledged £12.8 billion in support to Ukraine since February 2022, of which £7.8 billion is for military assistance. This includes £3 billion for military assistance in 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 45,000 Ukrainian personnel have been trained so far.
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 has been helping to coordinate requests for assistance from the Ukrainian government and has been supporting the delivery of humanitarian and non-lethal aid through its pre-existing Comprehensive Assistance Package. In July 2024 NATO agreed to take on a greater role in the coordination of military assistance and training among NATO allies and will work in conjunction with the US-led Ukraine Defense Contact Group. Allies also agreed to a "minimum baseline funding of €40 billion [for Ukraine military assistance] within the next year".
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.
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.
Using profits from sanctioned Russian assets
Separate proposals have recently been agreed by the G7 countries and the EU Member States that will see the profits from sanctioned Russian assets, held in their respective jurisdictions, used to help finance military assistance to Ukraine. Under the EU agreement the first tranche of funding for weapons purchases, channelled through the European Peace Facility, was mobilised in July 2024.
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.
This report from the Commons Library with many links can be seen at https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-9477/
For amore extensive and detailed report covering all the contributing counties read Military assistance to Ukraine
since the Russian invasion
[url=https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-9477/CBP-9477.pdf]Military assistance to Ukraine
since the Russian invasion[/url]
Pdf 82 Pages
Covering the following -
UK military assistance 24
3.3 United States 27
3.4 Bilateral assistance from other NATO countries 30
Albania 30
Belgium 31
Bulgaria 32
Canada 34
Croatia 35
Czech Republic 36
Denmark 37
Estonia 39
Finland 40
France 41
Military assistance to Ukraine since the Russian invasion
4 Commons Library Research Briefing, 24 September 2024
Germany 44
Greece 48
Hungary 49
Iceland 50
Italy 51
Latvia 52
Lithuania 53
Luxembourg 54
Montenegro 55
Netherlands 55
North Macedonia 57
Norway 58
Poland 60
Portugal 62
Romania 62
Slovakia 63
Slovenia 65
Spain 65
Sweden 67
Turkey 68
3.5 Other allies and partners 69
Austria 69
Cyprus 69
Ireland 70
Switzerland 70
Australia 71
New Zealand 72
Japan 72
South Korea 73
3.6 NATO military
There are many web site covering the Ukraine Russian war. For detailed reports on Ukraine Russian war and others try Institute for the Study of War
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