NATO Secretary General proposed that alliance countries allocate 0.25% of GDP for military assistance to Ukraine. The United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, and Canada blocked it, writes The Telegraph.
The United Kingdom, France, Spain, Italy, and Canada have blocked a proposal for NATO member countries to allocate 0.25% of their GDP for military assistance to Ukraine. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte acknowledged that his plan would not be implemented as it did not receive sufficient support. This was reported by The Telegraph on Sunday, May 24.
Rutte had hoped that the proposal would be ratified at the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8.
This week, ministers began discussing the initiative. According to a source, at least seven members expressed support for it, each of which is already spending more than 0.25% of their GDP on military assistance to Ukraine. However, unanimous support from all member countries of the alliance is required for ratification.
UK Assistance to Ukraine
This is already the second blow to the UK's authority as one of Ukraine's most loyal allies, The Telegraph noted. This week, the government in London faced sharp criticism after approving temporary exemptions for the purchase of aviation and diesel fuel refined from Russian oil in third countries.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer had previously promised to allocate at least £3 billion a year to support Ukraine - about 0.1% of GDP.
According to data analyzed by the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW), the Netherlands, Poland, as well as countries in Northern Europe and the Baltics provide assistance of 0.25% of GDP or more.
Kyiv's Partners Discussed Ways to End the War with Zelensky
Earlier, on May 22, three key European allies of Ukraine held talks with the country's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, on how to revive stalled efforts to end the aggressive Russian war. The focus of the video conference, which included German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, French President Emmanuel Macron, and UK Prime Minister Starmer, was on "how to activate diplomacy for peace and ensure Europe's involvement in this process," the Ukrainian president reported on Telegram, as stated by Deutsche Welle.
