Germany plans to cut its military aid to Ukraine by half next year, even with the potential return of Donald Trump to the White House, who could limit support for Kyiv.
According to a draft of the 2025 budget reviewed by Reuters, German aid to Ukraine will decrease from around 8 billion euros in 2024 to 4 billion euros ($4.35 billion) in 2025.
Trump drew sharp criticism from Western officials for his comments about not defending countries that do not meet NATO’s defense spending targets, even suggesting Russia might attack them.
Germany has been criticised for consistently failing to meet NATO’s goal of spending 2% of its GDP on defense.
Germany anticipates that Ukraine will be able to cover most of its military needs with the $50 billion in loans from frozen Russian assets agreed upon by the Group of Seven, hoping that the funds allocated for armaments will not be fully utilised.
The U.S. pushed to “front load” these loans, providing Ukraine with a large sum upfront.
Officials say EU leaders agreed to this approach partly to ensure Ukraine has sufficient funds if Trump returns to the White House.
Concerns arose in Europe this week after Trump chose Senator J.D. Vance, who opposes military aid for Ukraine and suggested Europe must depend less on the U.S. for its defense, as his vice presidential candidate.
Reuters
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