The European nations most committed to helping Ukraine fight off Russia’s invasion pledged continuing support for Kyiv on Wednesday while urging that the conflict over Iran not divert attention and resources away from a beleaguered country in desperate need of air defenses.
“We have to ensure that we are capable of delivering uninterrupted support for Ukraine,” said Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO, at a meeting in Berlin of some four dozen countries that back Kyiv. “We cannot lose sight of Ukraine.”
Britain’s defense secretary, John Healey, the co-chair of the meeting along with Boris Pistorius, Germany’s defense minister, stated the position bluntly. “With eyes on the Middle East in recent weeks, Putin wants us to be distracted,” Mr. Healey said, referring to President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, “but Ukrainians continue to fight with huge courage, and nothing will distract us from continuing to stand with them for as long as it takes to secure peace.”
Peace talks on Ukraine have effectively been suspended because of the war in Iran, Mr. Pistorius said. He added, “The truth is, anyway, Russia has never taken them seriously. This is why it is all the more important to support Ukraine.”
Britain, Germany, Norway, Belgium, Bulgaria and Estonia, among other countries, announced new support for Ukraine’s war effort, while Mr. Rutte appealed for other allied countries to contribute more, aiming to reach a target of $60 billion this year in military aid to Ukraine.
The ministers, many of them participating online, met in the context of the Ukraine Defense Contract Group, some 50 nations that have agreed to try to coordinate their military aid to Ukraine. The group’s contributions are especially important given President Trump’s decision to end nearly all military and financial aid to Ukraine and shift the burden to the Europeans. The United States is still providing crucial American intelligence to Kyiv.
Ukraine’s defense minister, Mykhailo Fedorov, who also attended, appealed in particular for more air defenses against Russian missiles and drones, as well as more artillery ammunition. The Iran war has caused troubling shortages of air defense systems, military analysts say, an urgent need for Ukrainian towns and cities under constant Russian bombardment.
Mr. Federov said that Ukraine was holding its own and inflicting what he called record losses on Russian forces, and he praised efforts to jointly produce weapons with Kyiv.
For the United States, Elbridge A. Colby, the under secretary of defense for policy, attended virtually.
The contact group was set up originally by the United States under President Joseph R. Biden Jr., but the chairmanship was handed to Europeans before Mr. Trump took office.
Vice President JD Vance said on Tuesday that “one of the things I’m proudest that we’ve done in this administration is we’ve told Europe that if you want to buy weapons, you can, but the United States is not buying weapons and sending them to Ukraine anymore.”
Washington has continued to sell Europeans weapons bound for Ukraine, and many NATO countries are buying such weapons for Ukraine under a program known as PURL, which coordinates purchases with Ukraine’s most pressing needs.
The contact group also provides countries an opportunity to promote their contributions. Germany hosted President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and Mr. Fedorov, his defense minister, on Tuesday. They announced a plan for joint production of advanced drones, missiles, software and other munitions worth up to $4.7 billion. The plan would include German air defense missiles and would allow Kyiv to buy several hundred American-made Patriot missiles, crucial for air defense, Mr. Fedorov said.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz of Germany said that his country’s continuing commitment to Ukraine’s defense was “a very clear signal” to Russia. He also hailed electoral defeat of Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, who has been blocking an interest-free European loan of $106 billion to Ukraine, which urgently needs the money.
Mr. Zelensky then traveled to Norway, where, on Wednesday, he announced an agreement for further air defenses and cooperation on drones, before moving on to Italy.
Britain, for its part, announced a large support package for Ukraine, including more than 120,000 advanced drones to be delivered this year, including long-range strike drones and those for reconnaissance and logistics.
The Europeans are also planning a mission to help keep the Strait of Hormuz open, in coordination with the United States, once the Iran conflict ends. That effort is, in part, to assuage Mr. Trump and in part to defend international law, which compels freedom of passage in international waterways like the strait.
France and Britain are coordinating the planning, which has involved some 30 countries. On Friday, President Emmanuel Macron of France and Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain will host an online meeting to discuss how to police the strait after the war, including the use of mine sweepers, frigates and destroyers. Mr. Merz is expected to attend in person. China and India were invited, but not the United States.
The plans involve military escorts and surveillance to give shipping and insurance companies confidence that it is safe to transit the strait.
Steven Erlanger is the chief diplomatic correspondent in Europe and is based in Berlin. He has reported from over 120 countries, including Thailand, France, Israel, Germany and the former Soviet Union.
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