Europe will rise to challenge if US support for Ukraine stalls, former commander says

Europe has recently surpassed the United States in terms of its total military contribution to Ukraine and is capable of doing even more, a former commander of US Army Europe has suggested.

Lieutenant General (Ret'd) Ben Hodges explained: "From a purely industrial and military standpoint, when it comes to Russia or support for Ukraine, yes, Europe already provides more than the US does.

"I don't think the Europeans have really got started, got serious about improving defence production output - we're talking about ammunition.

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"This is a matter of political will. If enough European leaders are concerned enough that the US may back away then I think they will invest as they should."

Speaking to the Sitrep podcast, Lt Gen Hodges said: "We're going to have a real problem if Ukraine fails, as the Russians have made it very clear that Ukraine is not their only objective.

"They talk about Moldova, they talk about Baltic countries - so when you talk about Baltic countries, you're talking about Nato allies."

He suggested this could result in a conflict where Nato is involved, with many other countries being drawn in because of their obligations under Article 5 of the Washington Treaty where an armed attack on one is an armed attack on all.

Lt Gen Hodges said it would take Russia between three to five years to rebuild its armed forces and industry to a point where Moscow could feel confident in taking on a Nato nation.

But he added: "They would only do this if they saw that we failed to demonstrate the will and capability and capacity to help Ukraine defeat Russia."

You can listen to the full conversation and analysis from Lt Gen Hodges on Sitrep wherever you get your podcasts, including on the Forces News YouTube channel.