Aid is a compassionate gesture, in the common parlance. But in International relations, it is so often a geopolitical tool, employed by the states to influence others and thereby realize their interests. Whatever the objectives of the states in rendering the aid, the Ukrainian crisis presented an opportunity to channelize the aid.
The Ukrainian president made an appeal to the world community: “We need heavy artillery, armed vehicles, air defense systems and combat aircraft — anything to repel Russian forces and stop their war crimes.”
This is typically an appeal for an aid and many states such as UK, US, Australia, Canada, France, Poland, Sweden, Finland and Norway did respond in the ways they could, either in the form of arms delivery or a humanitarian assistance.
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Europe’s arms and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine
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Ukraine is not a member state of European Union. Yet it received a considerable amount of support from EU. Many European countries have really altered their own policies and prior commitments in order to support Ukraine.
Since the Soviet Union invaded Finland in 1939, Sweden, for example, has not supplied military aid to a country at war. Similarly, Germany has a policy of solely giving nonlethal aid to conflict zones. Both countries are now providing military weapons to Ukraine.
By transferring up to 2,000 M72 anti-tank guns, Norway is reversing a policy of not supplying warring countries. The EU’s contribution did not just stop with the military aid. They had also furnished the humanitarian assistance.
The EU announced that 10,000 free beds in hospitals across the EU had been “reserved” for Ukrainians, and that the first war casualties from Ukraine had been delivered to EU hospitals.
On April 13, 2022, the European Peace Facility raised military funding to €1.5 billion, which includes personal protection equipment, first-aid kits, and fuel, in addition to military equipment.
In terms of monetary renderings the EU member states contributed a combined 2.9 billion, with an additional 1.4 billion coming from EU institutions and 2 billion from the European Investment Bank.
Help of the NATO and the United States
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NATO members have supplied Ukraine with millions of dollars’ worth of military aid since Russia launched the invasion.
The United States had set aside a percentage of its revenue for Ukrainian military aid. According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy’s Ukraine Support Tracker, which tracks military, financial, and humanitarian aid pledges to Ukraine, Washington gave Kyiv the equivalent of €7.6 billion in the four weeks following Russia’s incursion on February 24.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting of Western allies on April 21, US President Joe Biden announced that the US plans to assist Ukraine with an $800 million military aid package.
The package consists of 72 mm towered howitzers with 44,000 rounds of ammunition, 121 Phoenix Ghost tactical drones, and a lower-capability version of the Switchblade designed for export to Ukraine fast.
As regards the humanitarian assistance, United States had allocated 1 billion US dollars for food and medical assistance in Ukraine. Disturbed by overwhelming assistance to Ukraine,
Russian defense and Chief Sergei Shigu observed that “The United States and Western states under its control are doing everything to drag out the military operation for as long as possible.”
Supporting the refugees:
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The Ukrainian situation resulted in a flood of refugees. According to the United Nations, more than 5 million people have fled Ukraine since Russia launched its war. The majority of them have been welcomed by neighboring nations, with Poland presently receiving 2.8 million refugees and Romania, Hungary, and Moldova a total of 1.9 million.
France had welcomed around the 7500 refugees. The French government had set up a website to help to connect families offering accommodation with charities. According to the federal police nearly 100000 refugees were given accommodation by Germany.
The German government had also given the arrivals the right to work. In a unanimous vote the EU agreed to let most Ukrainians live, work, and study across the bloc for up to three years.
References
Hardig, A. C. (2022, March 22). Defending Europe: How cultural identity shapes support for Ukraine and armed resistance against Russia. The Conversation. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from The Conversation
Lowery, T. (2022, March 24). What Different Countries Are Doing (Or Not) to Help Ukraine’s Refugees. Global Citizen. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from Global Citizen
Ukraine war: Kyiv’s allies pledge more weapons to help win war. (2022, April 20). BBC. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from BBC
Which country has given the most money to Ukraine? (2022, April 19). Euronews. Retrieved April 23, 2022, from Euro News