PURL was set up last summer after U.S. President Donald Trump ended new military aid commitments to Kyiv, and Rutte has been raising money for the initiative from donor countries.
The NATO leader said Ukraine’s partners had pledged nearly $6 billion through the scheme. However, last year, allies pledged $5 billion, suggesting NATO has only finalized $1 billion in additional cash during the first five months of 2026 — far below the $12 billion goal Rutte had set for this year.
Inside NATO, officials insist that countries have already agreed to donate more, but these are awaiting final approval to be announced as formal packages. While “we are a little bit behind” on contributions, allies have committed “millions” more than Rutte can announce publicly, said a person familiar with the matter, who was granted anonymity to speak freely.
An alliance official speaking on behalf of the organization told POLITICO: “The Secretary General was clear that support to Ukraine through PURL will continue, so we should expect more pledges in the near future.”
The funding debate comes as the alliance scrambles to present a concrete funding pledge to reassure Kyiv ahead of the July summit of NATO leaders where Zelenskyy will attend on the sidelines.
Allies previously rejected a proposal by Rutte to earmark 0.25 percent of their GDP to Ukraine. They are now mulling a German proposal to increase the transparency of contributions paired with an as-yet undefined absolute funding target, according to three NATO diplomats.