Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Finland's Sanna Marin says Europe would be in trouble without US

Finland's Sanna Marin says Europe would be in trouble without US

Finnish PM Sanna Marin has said Europe is "not strong enough" to stand up to Russia's invasion of Ukraine on its own, and has had to rely on US support. "I must be brutally honest with you," Sanna Marin says. "We would be in trouble without the US."
During a visit to Australia, the leader of the pending Nato member said Europe's defences must be strengthened.

"I must be brutally honest with you, Europe isn't strong enough right now," she said. "We would be in trouble without the United States."

The US is by far the largest provider of military assistance to Ukraine.

Since the start of the war in February, it has committed $18.6bn (€17.7bn; £15.2bn) in support, a research briefing last month by the UK's House of Commons said.

The second largest donor is the European Union, followed by the UK, the Kiel Institute for the World Economy says. But their contributions are dwarfed by those of the US.

And with European countries' military stocks depleting as they supply Ukraine, Ms Marin said more needed to be done to bolster European defences.

Speaking at the Lowy Institute think tank in Sydney on Friday, Ms Marin said: "The United States has given a lot of weapons, a lot of financial aid, a lot of humanitarian aid to Ukraine and Europe isn't strong enough yet."

She added that Europe must make sure it is "building those capabilities when it comes to European defence, European defence industry, and making sure that we could cope in different kinds of situations".

While in office, US President Donald Trump regularly criticised European countries in Nato for not spending enough on defence.

In 2020, it was estimated the US spent just over 3.7% of its GDP on defence - while the average for Nato's European members (and Canada) was 1.77%.

During her talk, Prime Minister Marin went on to criticise some European countries' attempts at building closer ties with Russia in recent decades.

"For a long time, Europe was building a strategy for Russia... to buy energy from Russia and to closen those economic ties, and we thought that this would prevent the war," she said.

But she said that mindset was "proven entirely wrong".

European countries should have listened to states like Poland and the Baltics, she said, who had warned that Russia does not "care about their economic ties, they don't care about the sanctions, they don't care about any of that" when it comes to invading Ukraine.

Wide-reaching sanctions have been introduced by the EU and the US, among others, with the aim of limiting the resources Russia has to continue the war.

Many European Union and Nato member countries have also pledged to increase their defence spending following the start of the war.

In February, Germany announced an extra $113bn (£84bn) for its army, and a constitutional commitment to Nato's military spending target of 2% of GDP.

In June, the UK - under then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson - said its defence spending would hit 2.5% of GDP by the end of the decade.

All Nato members must commit to 2% to "to ensure the alliance's military readiness," Nato says. And there have been recent calls on Nato members to increase their defence spending to 3% of GDP.

Finland, which shares a long border with Russia, formally applied to join Nato in May. Accession protocols were signed in July, although they are yet to be ratified by all other members.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×