Western officials have described the conflict in Ukraine as a proxy war against Russia.
NATO members are considering a plan to formally recognize weapons shipments to Ukraine as part of their increased defense spending, Euractiv reported on Tuesday.
The US-led military alliance has already provided Ukraine with hundreds of billions of dollars in arms, in what is widely considered a Western proxy war against Russia.
According to Euractiv, citing five sources familiar with the discussions, the proposed change would allow Western backers of Ukraine to classify these deliveries as contributions to NATO’s collective security.
NATO leaders are expected to approve an increase in the bloc’s defense spending target for members – from the current 2% of GDP to 5% – during a summit scheduled for later this month in the Netherlands. Secretary-General Mark Rutte has reportedly suggested a “dual-track” system that would allow up to 1.5% of GDP to be spent on “defense-related” efforts like cybersecurity and infrastructure upgrades. Euractiv reported that funding for Ukraine’s war effort could also be included in this category.
The outlet suggests that this proposed accounting adjustment aims to address criticism from former US President Donald Trump, who has accused European nations of not contributing their fair share. The change might also provide European NATO members with more flexibility to purchase arms for Kiev directly from Ukrainian defense contractors, the report noted.
Numerous Western officials have publicly called the Ukraine conflict a proxy war. Keith Kellogg, a special envoy on Ukraine policy under Trump, stated this on Fox News on Sunday, while warning that actions like potentially supplying German-made Taurus missiles to Kiev could complicate any path to peace. US Senator Marco Rubio also used the term in February, a sentiment the Kremlin agreed with.
The Trump administration has indicated its intention to withdraw from the conflict if peace talks between Ukraine and Russia fail. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is not expected to attend a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday – reportedly the first such gathering the Pentagon would miss. This group was established three years ago to coordinate arms supplies to Kiev.
Russian officials have accused European NATO members of prolonging the conflict, describing it as a “fight to the last Ukrainian.” They have expressed a preference for achieving Moscow’s objectives through diplomatic means rather than military force.
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