Recently, during the infamous CNN town hall, Trump once again bragged that he would end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours, while also refusing to condemn Putin’s invasion. He also stated that the United States has provided more aid than Europe to Ukraine and that this needs to end. Not only does he grossly misrepresent the aid situation, but his claim of ending the war in 24 hours is also patently ridiculous. A war needs the consent of both parties to end, and until Ukraine has achieved its war goals it will keep fighting. Zelensky has made this clear over the weekend by making a tour of Europe, visiting Germany, France, Italy, and the UK, getting fresh obligations of support from all of them. This is a subtle and clear way for him to say that even without the U.S., Ukraine has friends that support her, and will keep fighting. Additionally, he very tactfully called out Trump during an interview, stating that a war in Ukraine was ongoing during Trump’s presidency, but Trump didn’t make a priority of fixing it, so why should he do so now? He went on to say that he and the Ukrainian people will fight not just to restore their territory, but in the name of justice for their murdered sons and daughters. These are not the words of a bluffer, polling shows Ukrainians will keep fighting even if Russian uses nuclear weapons against them.

Then there is Trump’s representation of aid to Ukraine. A best-case scenario is that he is not familiar with the numbers, and hasn’t been briefed or educated. Worst case scenario he is knowingly twisting facts in order to weaken Ukraine’s position. When you examine the statistics in perspective, and examine the aid that has actually arrived in Ukraine, you would be surprised who is putting out the most.

First, there are the refugees. All the countries around Ukraine have received a flood of refugees from Ukraine, and have housed, them fed them, and clothed them. The United States has, in contrast, taken in very few refugees, and has footed very little of the bill there. Of course, if we had, I’m sure plenty of people would have protested.

Aid to Ukraine

Then there is military aid. Sure, the US has led the charge, committing large amounts of money and equipment. It is important to note that this equipment is mostly older, much of it, like the M113s, is considered outdated, and is no longer used, or faded out. Other systems, such as Javelin and M155 are readily available, and we are now increasing production of all needed systems (which also stimulates the U.S. economy). To top it off, the military values this equipment at its original purchase price, meaning that used systems show on reports at the price of a new system. Obviously, this artificially increases the value of the aid being sent to Ukraine. In fact, many sources claim that it is cheaper to ship an M113 to Ukraine than to scrap it.

Then there is the fact that we here in the US do have a gigantic economy, massive GPD, and a massive arsenal of weapons. When you consider the sheer size of the US and its arsenal, it would appear we haven’t sent enough aid. Countries in Europe generally do devalue their equipment, so their figures can be misleading for this reason. Also, most of these countries are smaller and less powerful than the US, so their contributions, though smaller, are comparatively much larger. For example, the below chart shows heavy weapons pledged to Ukraine by the percentage of that country’s total stock. The US is at the bottom.

And another, this total support by country GDP, the US doesn’t show as badly here, but tiny Estonia, Latvia, and Poland all vastly top our contributions in terms of relative cost.

Another final example. Tanks, the US has pledged a total of 31 tanks to Ukraine, and Poland has sent hundreds of tanks. Even the UK, which doesn’t have a large stockpile of modern tanks has sent 14 tanks, almost half as much as America.

Poland sent 250 tanks as the first country half a year ago or even more than that. Right now, we are ready to send 60 of our modernised tanks, 30 of them PT-91. And on top of those tanks, 14 tanks, Leopard 2 tanks, from in our possession

Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland’s prime minister https://news.sky.com/story/poland-to-send-60-more-tanks-to-ukraine-in-addition-to-the-14-it-previously-announced-12796770

In short, the US could do much more to swiftly end the war in Ukraine, the best way to end the way is to send more weapons. Send more tanks, send airplanes, and send trainers to train the UAF on the new systems. Establish new NATA bases close to the border to resupply the UAF and repair their vehicles. With the proper aid and training Ukraine could and will end the war on terms favorable to them, and a Ukrainian victory is a geo-political win for the United States. All other matters of morality aside, it is in the best interest of America to support Ukraine in its fight for freedom.