received up-to-date information on the money spent on arms deliveries to Ukraine. The investments of arms countries in Central and Eastern Europe and the Baltic States in particular are attracting attention.
Rikhard Husu,
Janne Toivonen
Little Estonia catches the eye when looking at which countries have supported Ukraine the most armedly during the Russian-led offensive.
Estonia has supplied an impressive amount of armaments to Ukraine, a country of 1.3 million people: 122-million field cannons, Javelin anti-tank missiles, landmines, disposable weapons, automatic weapons, drones, hand grenades, ammunition, laser rangefinders, helmets and medical supplies.
– Every square meter of invincible Ukraine, every life saved and every vehicle destroyed by an attacker is good news and important to us, Commander of the Estonian Defense Forces Martin Herem comments latest arms deliveries (switch to another service) at the beginning of April.
In a country where the atrocities of the Soviet Union are still fresh in our minds, the issue of Ukraine seems almost self-evident.
– Putin must not win this war. He must not even think that he has won, that his appetite will not increase, Kallas writes.
Statistics reveal differences between countries
gained access to the IfW Institute for the World Economy in German recent information (switch to another service) Of the money spent on arms supplies to Ukraine. The institute has compiled data on EU countries and non-EU members of the G7 that sent arms to Ukraine, ie the United States, Canada, Britain and Japan.
All kinds of weapons and military equipment, as well as other donations to the Ukrainian Defense Forces, such as fuel and food rations, have been counted as military assistance. The statistics also take into account direct subsidies for the purchase of weapons and bilateral loans.
The review took place between 24.1 and 23.4, ie it also takes into account pre-war weapons assistance. The differences in the amount of aid are considerable.
As expected, most arms aid has come from the United States. The top five also include the big EU countries Poland and Germany, and the G7 countries Britain and Canada.
Estonia, Latvia and Slovakia are also major suppliers of defense equipment. This is particularly the case when the amount of aid is proportional to the gross domestic product of the countries concerned. The latter statistic includes all material assistance, ie non-weapons assistance.
Finland is the European middle caste in terms of arms aid. Finland has spent EUR 10 million on arms aid and EUR 14 million on other bilateral aid.
However, it is possible that some of the weapons delivered will be excluded from the statistics. The Kiel Institute points out that there is a lack of precise information on the equipment provided for France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Finland.
An accurate picture of arms assistance to individual countries is hardly available, says a researcher at the Estonian Center for International Defense Research Martin Hurt in a video interview.
Silence can be affected by both domestic politics and concerns about Russia’s backlash. There is a risk that deliveries from Europe will be targeted at Russia. Ukraine also may not want to open up the details of arms donations.
“It is important to tell the West about supporting Ukraine without going into details, as this could have a detrimental effect on the war effort,” Hurt concludes.
Finland’s arms aid at the basic level of the EU
New decisions regarding arms assistance are constantly being made. Of the major European countries, all except Italy and Spain have now supplied or are in the process of supplying heavy weapons to Ukraine when Germany also decided to allow the deployment of Cheetah anti-aircraft armor in support of Ukraine.
This map shows what kind of weapons assistance has been given to Ukraine by various European countries. The countries are divided into three categories: countries that have supplied heavy weapons, countries that have supplied small arms and countries that have not sent arms to Ukraine.
The aid provided by Finland, ie shotguns, assault rifles, ammunition, helmets and bulletproof vests, is more or less at the basic level of the EU.
Ukraine’s immediate neighbors are active
Eastern Europe has supplied Ukraine with a relatively large amount of heavy armaments, such as tanks and field cannons. The member states of Central and Eastern Europe have a lot at stake. Almost all of them share a common external border with either Ukraine or Russia.
Their assistance is also supported by equipment compatible with Ukraine. The countries still have a large amount of Soviet-era equipment at their disposal, which is also available to the Ukrainian army.
– These are partly weapons, but above all ammunition that are well standardized, Hurt says.
Some of the deliveries have been made in complete silence, so that Russia will not get an accurate record of them.
The Czech Republic has also sent T-72 armor and Slovakia has supplied a heavy S-300 anti-aircraft system. Slovenia has negotiated an exchange with Germany to send Yugoslav M-84 tanks to Ukraine. Lithuania, for its part has said (you are switching to another service) they have already sent everything they can from their warehouses.
The old equipment has alleged to have been (moving to another service) some quality problems. This is the case, for example, with the T-72 wagons sent by the Czech Republic and Poland. In return, the Czech Republic and Slovakia have announced that they will repair Ukraine’s damaged military equipment.
Of the Central and Eastern European member states, Hungary and Bulgaria have only exported relief supplies. A friend of Putin Viktor Orbánin Hungary is the only EU country to ban arms transfers through its territory.
Bulgaria hinted that it might start armed aid when Russia cut off gas supplies to the country in late April.
The EU Peace Facility will offset the costs
EU countries have also taken joint decisions to provide arms assistance to Ukraine. In the first week of the war, EU foreign ministers agreed to use the so-called peace fund to arm Ukraine.
The Peace Facility is an instrument outside the EU budget that allows for joint investments in arms exports. The share of Ukraine’s weapons has been increased to 1.5 billion euros since the outbreak of the war.
Through the Peace Facility, EU member states can claim compensation for arms aid sent to Ukraine. According to the Ministry of Defense, Finland is seeking compensation for at least disposable vests, bulletproof vests and composite helmets.
Many other EU countries have also applied for EU assistance to Ukraine. It is hoped that the single EU currency will also create incentives for member states to increase arms aid to Ukraine.
– Some countries would have provided military equipment regardless of the EU decision. But I believe that this has affected the willingness of many countries to take far-reaching decisions in support of Ukraine.
So far, a lot of old equipment has been sent to Ukraine. According to Hurt, sending the best available material to Ukraine must also be considered.
– I think there will be a serious debate in a few weeks’ time.
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