The European Union agreed to give $54 billion more support to Ukraine on Thursday. It will help Ukraine pay salaries, pensions, and other government bills. It will allow Kyiv to continue fighting Russian invaders. EU leaders deserve praise for persuading Russian President Vladimir Putin‘s favorite EU leader, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, to support this allotment of extra cash. But the new EU money is important for another reason: It reduces pressure on the United States to carry most of the financial burden of Ukraine’s support.
Ukraine is 3,990 miles from the U.S. but borders four EU member states. Russia’s war is part and parcel of Putin’s imperial project to dominate Eastern and Central Europe. This encompasses at least four EU and NATO member states — Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland. It is imperative for EU security that Russia be defeated.
The EU still pretends that America should do as much, if not more, for Ukraine than Europe. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen claimed on Thursday that the $54 billion “will be an encouragement for the United States also to do their fair share.”
That is an unfair slight. America has provided the vast majority of the most important tool in Ukraine’s defensive inventory — munitions needed to keep fighting. This is ignored in most media coverage of the Kiel Institute’s much-referenced Ukraine aid tracker. The EU admits it has delivered little more than half of the munitions it pledged. Nor has it disbursed much of the money it pledged to Kyiv. While some EU-NATO members, such as France, are belatedly boosting their defense spending, too many others, such as Belgium, Germany, Italy, and Spain, continue to regard NATO as a way to free-ride on America.
The U.S. should support Ukraine. We have a manifest interest in making sure Putin’s gambit fails. His threat to NATO allies would grow immensely if he were to prevail. American forces would be far likelier to have to fight another war in Europe. The risk of nuclear escalation would grow.
This does not mean the U.S. should send whatever funds and weapons Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky requests. Corruption remains endemic in Ukraine. Zelensky’s government has made only half-hearted efforts to stamp it out. And while his wartime leadership has been impressive, his ego continues to undermine the international support Ukraine deserves and needs. These concerns deserve forthright American attention.
The U.S. military faces escalating global demands.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
In the Middle East, Iran and its proxies continue to wreak havoc. Tehran’s actions, including its deliberate killing of Americans, threaten a regional conflagration. Then, there’s China. Rising military tensions with Beijing are not limited to Taiwan. The Philippines suffers increasingly aggressive harassment in the South China Sea.
The U.S. cannot do everything everywhere. Our nuclear umbrella over Europe remains crucial, as does the sustained readiness of the U.S. Army to fight alongside allies against any Russian attack on NATO. Still, the U.S. government and military must also prioritize the threat posed by China. American aid to Ukraine should continue, but the EU, as with the $54 billion, should take the lead.