Europe can replace most of the US financial and military aid to Ukraine if Washington permanently stops its support for Kiev, an analysis by the German Institute for the World Economy in Kiel (IfW Kiel) shows, DPA reported, quoted by BTA.
"Our data shows that Europe could compensate for most of the US aid, but only if political leaders act decisively", said institute researcher Christoph Trebes.
He noted that the only exception is military intelligence - in this area Europe does not have the necessary capacity.
European countries have allocated an average of 0.1% of their annual gross domestic product for aid to Ukraine, the German Institute for World Economics said.
If the United States were to permanently cut its support, European countries would have to increase their spending to 0.21%, which is 82 billion euros per year, compared to the current 44 billion euros, the analysis shows.
To achieve this, European institutions would have to increase their spending from 16 billion euros to 36 billion euros. Germany would have to spend at least 9 billion euros (it currently spends 6 billion), and France would have to spend 6 billion euros instead of the current 1.5 billion euros.
"If all of Europe followed Denmark's example and spent 0.5 percent of GDP per year, we could even provide more aid than the United States," Trebes said.
The American military aid that would need to be replaced consists mainly of rocket artillery, howitzer ammunition and long-range air defense systems, the analysis shows.
The institute said that to compensate for the loss of American weapons systems and ammunition, Europe could turn to international markets and purchase similar systems.
European governments could also order weapons, especially drones, directly from Ukraine, the institute suggested.