Hundreds of defense officials gathered in February for the 2025 Munich Security Conference. Government officials, policymakers, and defense experts discussed “global security challenges, including global governance, democratic resilience … [and the] future of the transatlantic partnership.” In addition, they addressed “regional conflicts and crises,” as well as Europe’s role in the world.
Much discussion concerned the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Despite three years of death and destruction, the war continues with no end in sight.
Inconclusive Results, Uncertain Future
To counter Russian aggression, dozens of countries have provided the Ukrainians with hundreds of billions of dollars in defense, medical, humanitarian, and financial aid. This assistance has helped Ukraine defend its territory from Russia, and it has saved Ukrainian lives.
But international aid to Ukraine will soon change. Recently, U.S. President Donald Trump argued that American assistance to Ukraine is too expensive. He announced a near-total freeze on all foreign aid, and he stated that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) would be shut down. Ukraine is one of USAID’s largest aid recipients, and the decision to freeze aid meant numerous organizations would not receive funding for their programs. Assistance from USAID was vital to Ukraine’s survival.
Trump has also argued that Europe should be doing more to help Ukraine. “The European Union should be paying a lot more than they’re paying,” Trump said last month when asked about aid to Ukraine.
Senior officials in Trump’s administration agree. For example, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently called on the EU and NATO to take a larger role in assisting Ukraine. Similarly, Vice President JD Vance said Europe “is going to have to take a bigger role in its own security,” suggesting the United States will begin to reduce its engagements with Europe, as well as its aid efforts to Ukraine.
Trump and Vance have previously argued that the United States is doing too much to aid Europe and Ukraine. But what are the figures?
Since the start of Russia’s war in February 2022, the United States has appropriated $175 billion in aid to Ukraine. However, only $100 billion of this assistance has been allocated. Meanwhile, Europe has committed €241 billion in assistance to Ukraine, with €125 billion allocated. The United Kingdom has pledged £12.8 billion to aid Ukraine.
Aid distribution has had its challenges. According to reports, Ukrainian soldiers use Western ammunition and weapons much faster than this aid arrives. Further, governing bodies in the United States and the European Union were slow to send additional assistance to Ukraine when its forces had momentum against the Russians. The delays in sending arms – specifically, the U.S. Congress deliberated on aid from October 2023 through April 2024, while the EU stalled from June 2023 to February 2024 – allowed the Russians to regroup and restrategize. Those delays, in other words, have been costly.
Now, as the United States begins to cut its assistance, additional pressure will fall on the European continent as it looks to continue supporting Ukraine.
Turn to Technology
But there are ways for Europe to relieve the pressure. For example, the European Union has opened a Defense Innovation Office in Ukraine. This initiative seeks to promote cross-border cooperation between Ukraine and the EU. The program will also work to identify Ukrainian needs and capabilities in defense innovation. Finally, the Office will “inform Ukrainian defense innovation stakeholders on access to EU programs and possible funding.” Overall, the program will try to streamline the efforts to improve Ukrainian defense capabilities.
But this office alone will not be enough. The Europeans must pursue additional avenues to ensure the Ukrainians receive the capabilities they need to fight back against Russia. Technology-sharing is another path, a method that would reduce duplication in weapons production, enable the pooling of resources, and produce synergies across the EU and NATO. Technology-sharing would also address manufacturing setbacks, allowing countries to play to their strengths.
Technology-sharing with Kyiv would also provide Ukrainians with the opportunity to build Western weapons and equipment in Ukrainian factories, thus cutting production time and obviating delays in the delivery of assistance. Such factories would lessen the burden on Europe’s defense-industrial base, as the Ukrainians could produce the weapons they need for the war. This would reduce financial pressure on Europe – Ukrainian production would save European nations billions of euros in defense assistance to Kyiv.
Risks are Worthwhile for Ukraine, NATO and EU
Critics might argue that sharing technology with a country that is a member of neither NATO nor the EU is risky. But there are concrete examples to show technology-sharing works. For example, the United Kingdom has established a data-sharing framework with the European Union, even though the UK is no longer a member of the EU. Similarly, the United States and the United Kingdom have a technology-sharing relationship with Australia, even though Australia is not a member of NATO.
Finally, throughout the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Ukrainians have shown that they are capable of using Western technology and weapons with ease. They have used this technology efficiently and effectively during the war, and Ukraine’s successes suggest it is becoming interoperable with the West. Technology-sharing would be the next step in strengthening ties between Ukraine and the rest of the continent.
FORT BENNING, Ga. – Students in Armor Basic Officer Leader Course Class 20-005 conduct a platoon situational training exercise, Sept. 22, 2020, at Good Hope Maneuver Training Area on Harmony Church. Students train as both an attacking force and a defending force using the U.S. Army’s M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank. (U.S. Army photo by Patrick A. Albright, Maneuver Center of Excellence and Fort Benning Public Affairs)
The future of assistance to Ukraine is changing. Encouraging technology-sharing would strengthen the defense relationship between Ukraine and Europe. It would provide Ukraine with the weapons it needs to defend itself from Russia, while also reducing the burden on weapons production from EU and NATO member-states. Finally, technology-sharing would invigorate defense innovation on the European continent, leading to a stronger and more secure Europe.
The possibilities of a stronger defense relationship among the EU, NATO, and Ukraine are endless. Technology-sharing should be seriously considered and explored.
About the Author: Mark Temnycky
Mark Temnycky is a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center and an accredited freelance journalist who has been covering Eurasian affairs for nearly a decade.
