White House: U.S. the “Biggest Provider” to Ukraine

On Wednesday’s “PBS NewsHour,” White House National Security Council Senior Director for Europe Amanda Sloat stated that while “the United States is the biggest provider of security assistance” “The Europeans certainly have stepped up to help the Ukrainians.” And the U.S. will encourage its allies and partners “to continue providing them with the artillery, the ammunition, and other capabilities that they need.”

Host Judy Woodruff asked, “It’s clear that the Europeans are not doing as much for Ukraine as the Americans have been. They’ve certainly provided some support. What kind of conversation is the administration having with Europeans about doing more?”

Sloat responded, “The Europeans certainly have stepped up to help the Ukrainians. It is certainly true that the United States is the biggest provider of security assistance. But there [are] a large number of countries in Europe and more broadly that have also contributed capabilities to the Ukrainians. The Europeans certainly have borne the brunt of the refugee crisis. Many of them are housing upwards of millions of Ukrainians. They have also been a very strong partner in terms of the implementation of sanctions, and, again, with some of their economic impacts, have really borne the economic costs of that, and have continued to do things on the energy front as well. We convened a Ukraine Defense Contact Group that meets regularly. And, as part of today’s announcement, we’ll be continuing to encourage our allies and partners, especially on the air defense side, as well as to continue providing them with the artillery, the ammunition, and other capabilities that they need.”

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