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Ukraine Support: Europe largely fills the US aid withdrawal, lead by the Nordics and the UK

16.06.2025

Aid flows to Ukraine shifted significantly in March and April 2025. While the United States allocated no new aid during this period, European countries increased their support. As a result, Europe has, for the first time since June 2022, surpassed the U.S. in total military aid, totaling EUR 72 billion compared to EUR 65 billion from the U.S. However, the increase has not been evenly distributed across Europe. Countries such as the Nordics and the United Kingdom have markedly stepped up their aid, while others, such as Germany, have maintained more moderate levels. These are among the key findings from the latest update of the Ukraine Support Tracker, which includes data through April 2025.

European Aid Increase Barely Offsets U.S. Standstill

European support for Ukraine rose sharply in March and April. In just two months, Europe allocated EUR 10.4 billion in military aid and EUR 9.8 billion in humanitarian and financial aid. This represents the highest combined total for any two-month period since the start of the war.

This comes as the United States, formerly Ukraine’s largest donor, has not announced any new aid since early January. With U.S. contributions stalled, the key question is whether Europe can fill the gap.

The latest data suggest that Europe has largely done so, at least in financial terms. Average monthly aid from January to April 2025 slightly surpassed the 2022–2024 average.

"It is remarkable that Europe has filled the gap," says Christoph Trebesch, head of the Ukraine Support Tracker. "It remains to be seen whether this is a temporary spike or the beginning of a more lasting shift in Europe’s role as the main supporter of Ukraine."

European Surge Driven by a Few Countries

The latest data show that Europe’s recent aid surge has been driven by a small group of countries. Nordic nations stand out, with Sweden allocating EUR 1.6 billion in March and Norway allocating EUR 670 million in April—record monthly figures for both. In total, Nordic countries increased their aid by EUR 5.8 billion between January and April 2025.

Among larger European economies, the United Kingdom has stepped up as well, allocating EUR 4.5 billion so far this year. Of that amount, EUR 1.8 billion came from frozen Russian assets rather than new budget spending. France has contributed EUR 2.2 billion, including nearly EUR 195 million from frozen assets. EU institutions also played a major role, allocating EUR 12.2 billion during the same period.

In contrast, other major European economies have shown only modest increases. Spain and Italy have allocated just EUR 10 million and EUR 20 million respectively in 2025. Germany has allocated EUR 650 million in 2025, marking a drop of around 70 percent compared to the same period in 2024.

These figures for Germany are unaffected by the government’s recent decision to stop publishing detailed military aid data on its official website. The Ukraine Support Tracker’s dataset covers aid through April, while the website was taken offline in May.

"The strong engagement by the Nordic countries has become even more visible following the halt in new U.S. aid," says Trebesch. "In contrast, it is striking how little Germany has allocated in recent months. Rather than increasing its support after Trump took office, we observe a sharp decline in German aid compared to previous years. The same trend applies to Italy and Spain."

About the Ukraine Support Tracker

The Ukraine Support Tracker tracks and quantifies military, financial, and humanitarian assistance pledged to Ukraine since January 24, 2022. Included are 41 countries, specifically the EU member states, the other members of the G7, Australia, South Korea, Turkey, Norway, New Zealand, Switzerland, Turkey, China, Taiwan, India, and Iceland. It includes pledges made by the governments of these countries to the Ukrainian government; aid pledged by the EU Commission and the European Investment Bank is listed separately; private donations or those from international organizations such as the IMF are not included in the main database. Nor does it include aid to Ukraine's neighbors, such as Moldova, or to other countries, such as for the reception of refugees.

Data sources include official government announcements and international media reports. Aid in kind, such as medical supplies, food, or military equipment, is estimated using market prices or information from previous relief operations. In cases of doubt, the higher available value is used. The Ukraine Support Tracker is constantly being expanded, corrected and improved. Feedback and comments on our methodology paper and dataset are very welcome. You can reach us at ukrainetracker@ifw-kiel.de.

More information and all detailed data can be found on the Ukraine Support Tracker webpage.