DISINFO: Europe would go broke helping Ukraine if the US withdraws all support
SUMMARY
Europe would go broke trying to keep Ukraine afloat if the US dropped support. It would cost NATO’s European allies an additional $3.1 trillion over ten years to fund Ukraine and expand their own defense capabilities if President Trump left the burden to them, according to Bloomberg. Europe simply does not have the wherewithal to continue the proxy war with Moscow, and would be obliged to strike its own separate peace with Russia.
RESPONSE
This disinformation story aims to promote several recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narratives about Europe’s economic collapse and the inevitability of a Russian victory in the war in Ukraine. This is part of what some experts have labelled Russia’s economic war propaganda, aimed to convince audiences of Russia’s resilience in contrast to the woes of its adversaries, and of the futility of continuing with international aid for Ukraine to resist Russia’s aggression.
While the mention of Bloomberg is correct, the overall claim about Europe's possible bankruptcy is false. The figure refers to a ten-year period, which is a small fraction of the EU’s combined GDP of 17 trillion euros per year. This additional 3.1 trillion dollars in 10 years would cost the EU around 1.72% of its total GDP over the whole period. The EU has already provided 145 billion dollars to Ukraine and has committed an additional 54 billion dollars until 2027, among other economic aid measures.
This disinformation story also deliberately omits part of the original Bloomberg article, which states that “the cost of inaction could be much higher. Some leaders and many security officials are warning that if the Europeans fail to mount a convincing deterrent then Putin will only increase his attempts to weaken and ultimately even break up both the EU and the NATO alliance”. Quoting Western legitimate sources while distorting their content to introduce a pro-Kremlin message as if it were part of the original story is a frequent pro-Kremlin manipulative technique.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that Europeans are starving because of NATO-driven confrontation with Russia, that Brussels works to bankrupt European citizens through its defence strategy, that the EU screwed its economy by supporting Ukraine and now wants taxpayers to pay, or that NATO may get Europeans extinct, removing their pensions and social security.