Tensions between the United States and the European Union have flared over the future of arms shipments to Ukraine, as European leaders challenge Washington’s decision to profit from weapons sales rather than directly fund them. The rift comes amid an evolving NATO strategy and deepening war fatigue across both sides of the Atlantic, raising questions about the sustainability of support for Kiev.

At the center of the latest discord is US President Donald Trump’s July 14 announcement that, moving forward, the United States will manufacture and sell weapons for Ukraine, but will not pay for them. “We’re not buying it, but we will manufacture it, and they’re going to be paying for it,” Trump stated during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in the Oval Office. He emphasized that “this will be a business for us,” reinforcing his signature transactional approach to foreign policy.

The comments immediately drew a rebuke from European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who, while welcoming the availability of more arms for Ukraine, took issue with the implication that the US could label the aid as American if the bills were being paid by European capitals.

“We would like to see the US share the burden,” Kallas said on July 15. “If we pay for these weapons – it’s our support, it’s European support. We are doing as much as we can to help Ukraine, and therefore the call is that everybody would do the same.”

Her remarks reflect growing frustration within the EU that it is increasingly being left to shoulder the financial and........

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