As European military assistance to Ukraine intensifies – while the US election in November may turn the tap off of a seemingly limitless supply – the Netherlands continues to donate more money and materiel to the war torn country as its Armed Forces face up to an equipment shortage.
Reported in a letter to the House of Representatives in the Low Country, the Dutch Government announced its intention to send two forms of aid: fast and highly manoeuvrable rubber boats, patrol boats as well as assault craft to Ukraine and an additional €250m ($271.4m) contribution to the Czech initiative to order large numbers of artillery shells for Ukraine in the short term.
The delivery concerns 14 rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs), eight militarised river patrol boats, and CB90 assault craft. Some of these watercraft will be supplied from the Netherlands’ own inventory while others will be sourced from industry.
This maritime support comes after Ukraine demonstrated a series of asymmetric successes using one-way-attack uncrewed surface vessels (USVs) against Russia’s Black Sea Fleet. In early February, the Ukrainian Defence Intelligence unit claimed it had successfully destroyed a Russian corvette, the Ivanovets, which was soon followed by the destruction of one of the invading forces’ large amphibious ships, the Caesar Kunikov.
Since then, other Western European countries have sought bolster Ukraine’s maritime resources. Norway sent over rubber boats and assorted equipment valued Nkr60m ($5.67m) and even offered to train more Ukrianian marines later this year. This builds on the Scandinavian nation’s previous efforts to build Ukraine’s maritime fleet.
Since the beginning of December 2023, the Netherlands has supplied different kinds of ammunition, radar systems and individual weapons such as rifles and machine guns. Field hospitals, tents and accessories, generators and numerous medical goods have also been sent to Ukraine.
Moreover, it was recently announced that the Netherlands will supply over €100m in additional ammunition: “In addition to continued Dutch support over the long term, more ammunition is a top priority for Ukraine,” emphasised the Dutch Ministry of Defence.
This follows the UK’s promise to spend £245m ($310.7m) to procure “urgently needed” and domestically produced munitions throughout the next year to increase Ukraine’s ammunition.
