NATO seeks to 'Trump-proof' aid for Ukraine with fund

STORY: NATO foreign ministers met on Wednesday (April 3) to discuss a proposal for a 100 billion euro ($107 billion) five-year fund.

It is a plan seen as a way to "Trump-proof" aid for Ukraine.

The proposals would give the Western alliance a more direct role in coordinating the supply of arms, ammunition and equipment to Kyiv as it fights Russia's invasion, diplomats say.

Speaking before the meeting, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the proposal aims to send the message to Russia that it cannot win the war.

“What is obvious is that we need new and more money for Ukraine. And we need it over many years. And the whole idea of now discussing a framework, commitments and an institutionalized framework for the support is to ensure more predictability and more confidence that the money will come every month, every year for the long haul.''

He declined to confirm levels of funding and said the aim was for a decision to be taken at the July Washington summit.

Under the plans, NATO would take over some coordination work from a U.S.-led ad-hoc coalition known as the Ramstein group.

A move designed in part to guard against any cut in U.S. support if Donald Trump returns to the White House, diplomats said.

NATO has focused on non-lethal aid for Ukraine out of fears that a more direct role would trigger an escalation of tension with Russia.

Diplomats said there was a growing view it was time for the group to put military aid to Ukraine on a more sustainable footing.

But they said it was unclear whether the 100 billion euro figure - that's over $107 billion - would be accepted or how it would be financed.

Any decision by the group requires consensus of its 32 members.

Arriving at the talks, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock described the proposal as "right and important," saying that aid for Ukraine should be disbursed via "reliable, long-term structures."

But in a sign that a decision may not be easy, Hungary signalled skepticism about at least some elements of Stoltenberg's proposal.

Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto "firmly stated Hungary will not back any @NATO proposals that might draw the alliance closer to war or shift it from a defensive to an offensive coalition," government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said on X.