Iceland, unique among NATO member states, maintains no standing military of its own. Throughout the Cold War, the country was host to several debates about whether or not to withdraw from NATO. During the 1970s, Iceland even threatened to leave the alliance as a result of the Second and Third Cod Wars with the UK. But despite its pacifist nature and a prime minister that is known for her opposition to Iceland's NATO membership, the island nation has contributed peacekeepers to several NATO-led missions including in Iraq and Afghanistan and is host to a NATO air base. [1] Possessing no military equipment of its own, Iceland has for the most part concentrated its efforts on providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Examples of military aid include chartering cargo aircraft to transport military equipment from NATO member states to Ukraine and the provision of winter gear, EOD equipment and a field hospital. Iceland's contributions in military aid amount to approximately 2.7bn ISK (18.3 million euros). [2] Iceland's economic and humanitarian aid contributions to Ukraine have so far amounted to 3,1bn ISK (21 million euros). [2]

 

 

 

How to provide the Ukrainian Armed Forces with military aid when your country barely possesses a military in the first place? That's a question the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg must have asked itself in late February shortly after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine. But while Belgium is still struggling for an answer to this question even in June 2023, the Lëtzebuerger Arméi reacted quickly, and immediately donated seven Jeep Wranglers, 102 NLAW anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) and 15 military tents to Ukraine on the 28th of February 2022. [1]

 

Like so many NATO member countries Canada has contributed significantly to Ukraine's defensive capabilities after the Russian invasion of the country in February 2022. This aid has so far included eight Leopard 2A4 MBTs, 39 brand-new Armoured Combat Support Vehicles, 208 Roshel Senator infantry mobility vehicles (IMVs), four M777 towed howitzers and 4600 anti-tank weapons. Canada was also the first nation to supply Ukraine with guided artillery rounds, with an unknown number of M982 Excalibur GPS-guided shells being sent for use with Western-supplied 155mm howitzers.

 

In addition to supplying Ukraine with large volumes of armament, Germany has also attempted to entice other countries to send their heavy weaponry to Ukraine in a programme known as 'Ringtausch' (which roughly translates to 'circular exchange'). Under this policy, countries can receive German armament free of charge in exchange for delivering tanks and infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) from own stocks to Ukraine. Although this seemed a promising scheme at first, the 'Ringtausch' programme has largely failed to live up to expectations as most countries expect to have their Soviet-era systems replaced by larger numbers of modern weapon systems than what Berlin is currently able (or willing) to offer.

Finland is renowned for being the happiest country in the world, having the world's best education system, coolest (former) Prime Minister (Sanna Marin), and not feeling the need to brag about help given to other countries. The latter has made an accurate analysis of Finnish military support to Ukraine relatively difficult. What is known is that Finland pledged its first shipment of military aid already by February 27. Since then, at least fifteen more batches of military aid have reached Ukraine. [1] By May 2023, military aid from Finland was worth more than €1.1 billion. [2]

 

Contrary to popular perception, Germany has delivered significant amounts of arms and equipment to Ukraine to aid the country in its fight against the Russian military. In fact, the volume of arms deliveries by Berlin exceeds that of every other country safe for the United States. Nonetheless, Germany has faced severe criticism and even mockery for its perceived lack of support to Ukraine and its ill-fated attempts to keep its relationship with Moscow intact. While ultimately positioning itself as a reliable partner of Ukraine, it can be argued that Berlin's communication to affirm its Ukraine stance and explain foreign policy goals has been nothing short of an unmitigated disaster.