Europe is capable of supporting Ukraine's resistance to Russia even if the United States decides to completely stop its military support for Kiev, a senior military official responsible for coordinating German arms supplies told Reuters, BTA reports.
Major General Christian Freuding pointed out that last year, European NATO members and Canada, taken together, provided more military assistance to Kiev than the United States. They account for about 60% of the total costs borne by Ukraine's Western allies, he said.
"The war against Ukraine is raging on our continent, it is also being waged against the European security order. "If there is political will, then there will be means to largely offset the US support," Freuding said.
Ukraine continues to receive arms deliveries approved by former US President Joe Biden. It is unclear, however, whether his successor Donald Trump will approve new deliveries - or allow third countries to buy US weapons for Kiev, Reuters reports.
Asked how long the deliveries approved by Biden to Kiev would last, Freuding said that this depended on logistical processes, as well as on the speed at which Ukraine used up the weapons and ammunition, but summer seemed a realistic forecast.
"How the US government will approach further requests for military support for Ukraine is not yet clear. We cannot say anything on this issue," he added.
"In general, the US has a great interest in strengthening its defense industry. I can predict with some caution that at least the purchase of American defense goods and their delivery to Ukraine will continue to be possible.“
Commenting on the hypothetical possibility that Russia could threaten more than just Ukraine, Freuding said that Moscow has a clear plan to regroup and increase its military and is expected to succeed in its efforts to double its ground forces to 1.5 million by 2026.
“They are recruiting significantly more personnel than they need in terms of numbers to replace the soldiers for the war in Ukraine. They are producing, in particular, surplus ammunition stocks that they are "stacking".
Freuding said Russia is also expanding its military infrastructure, especially in its western military district bordering new NATO member Finland.
Any ceasefire in Ukraine could allow Russia to accelerate its rearmament efforts before a possible large-scale attack on NATO territory, he said. The alliance currently believes that could happen after 2029.
"Of course, a ceasefire could change the threat situation," Freuding noted.
Russia denies planning to attack NATO and claims to have launched a "special military operation" in Ukraine to protect its national security from the West, which it describes as aggressive and hostile, Reuters points out.