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The U.S. has been overtaken in its provision of aid to Ukraine, despite an additional package announced by the Department of Defense on January 6.
On December 10, the European Council agreed to send €18 billion ($19.47 billion) in military aid to Ukraine over the course of 2023.
Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson confirmed in a video posted on Twitter that the first €3 billion had been paid to Kyiv on Tuesday.
Czech Finance Minister Zbyněk Stanjura hailed the move as a show of the EU's commitment to supporting Kyiv "for as long as it takes."
In December, the European Council said the "short-term financial relief" and contributions to post-war reconstruction in Ukraine were given "with a view to supporting Ukraine on its path towards European integration."
According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy's Ukraine Support Tracker, a database of military, financial and humanitarian aid provided to Kyiv: "Europe has for the first time surpassed the U.S. in the value of total committed aid to Ukraine" following the promise of the €18 billion.
In an update posted to the tracker's page on December 7, the Institute said Germany had become Europe's largest donor country after the EU "significantly expanded its support commitments."
"Until now, the EU's support to Ukraine since the start of the war has always lagged behind that of the United States," according to Christoph Trebesch of the Kiel Institute, who leads the team updating the Institute's tracker.
"This has changed in recent weeks, as the total value of EU commitments now exceeds those of the U.S. The large new EU pledges are a welcome development, given the major role of this war for European security," he added.
On January 6, the State Department announced an additional $3.75 billion in military-related aid for Ukraine and its neighbors.
"This assistance includes a $2.85 billion drawdown from stocks of the Department of Defense to be provided immediately to Ukraine and $225 million in Foreign Military Financing to build the long-term capacity and support modernization of Ukraine's military," Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
The new aid constituted the 29th drawdown of U.S. equipment and arms for Kyiv since August 2021, Blinken added, with Ukraine's forces set to receive around 50 Bradley Infantry Fighting Vehicles within the aid package.
The latest drawdown put the overall military aid send to Ukraine by the U.S. at $24.9 billion since President Joe Biden took office.
Pentagon Press Secretary Air Force Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder, speaking during a Defense Department press briefing on January 12, said the U.S. was "absolutely supportive of any type of defense capabilities that our international allies and partners can provide to Ukraine."
Ryder emphasized that the U.S. would prioritize being able to meet its domestic national security demands, adding the "Department of Defense is working very closely with industry to identify what our needs and our requirements are."
"We're confident that given the robust industrial base that we have, that we'll be able to work through those challenges and make sure that we can replenish our stocks, in addition to working closely with our allies and partners around the world on the same problem set," he said.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will host a meeting of NATO officials and Western defense ministers at the U.S's Ramstein air base in Germany on Friday, with further aid provision likely to be on the agenda.
About the writer
Ellie Cook is a Newsweek security and defense reporter based in London, U.K. Her work focuses largely on the Russia-Ukraine ... Read more