The Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) pledged to send 21 billion euros ($23.7 billion) in future military aid for Kiev. Under the Joe Biden administration, Washington led the UDCG and was the largest contributor to the Western proxy war in Ukraine.
Following a meeting of the UDCG on Friday, the bloc announced the new military aid for Kiev. The majority of the aid was pledged by Berlin and London. Germany agreed to send Ukraine €11 billion over the next four years. The UK plans to send £4.5 billion this year.
The UDCG was formed and led by the US to facilitate Western support for the proxy war in Ukraine. After Trump returned to the White House, the US stepped back as the group’s leader. London and Berlin are now co-heads of the organization. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attended Friday’s summit remotely.
Discussing Berlin’s pledge, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius argued, “Given Russia’s ongoing aggression against Ukraine, we must concede (that) peace in Ukraine appears to be out of reach in the immediate future.” He added, “We will ensure that Ukraine continues to benefit from our joint military support.”
President Trump is making a major push to bring the war to an end with a diplomatic settlement.
US and Russian officials met in Turkey on Thursday, with both sides describing the talks as positive. On Friday, Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, traveled to St. Petersburg to meet with President Valdimir Putin.
UK Defence Secretary John Healey accused Putin of misleading the US about Russia’s interest in ending the war. “Putin said he wanted peace, but his forces continue to fire on Ukraine,” he said.
Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, who attended Friday’s summit, explained that Europe was now “taking the lead in security assistance for which we are thankful to the UK and Europe.” He noted that Washington has continued to send Kiev military aid.
Pistorius said Berlin’s pledge to send billions in weapons to Kiev over the next four years is because “Russia needs to understand that Ukraine is able to go on fighting, and we will support it.”
According to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, the German pledge includes 4 IRIS-T air-defence systems with 300 guided missiles, 300 reconnaissance drones, 120 MANPADS, 25 Marder infantry fighting vehicles, 15 Leopard 1A5 main battle tanks, 14 artillery systems, 100 ground surveillance radars, 30 PATRIOT guided missiles, and 100,000 rounds of artillery ammunition.
Berlin’s pledge notably does not include Patriot launch systems, just interceptors. Ukrainian President Zelesnky has recently made several appeals to allies for more air defense systems. Pistorius said Germany was unable to send a Patriot system to Ukraine as Berlin is waiting for deliveries of the platform for its defenses.
“Air defence is a problem all over the world – we are doing as much as we can as fast as we can,” said Pistorius.
Most of Britain’s military aid will come as radar systems and air defenses. “In our calculations, 70% to 80% of battlefield casualties are now caused and inflicted by drones,” Healey explained.
Kyle Anzalone is the opinion editor of Antiwar.com and news editor of the Libertarian Institute. He hosts The Kyle Anzalone Show and is co-host of Conflicts of Interest with Connor Freeman.
