Volodymyr Zelensky says the armies of Europe and Ukraine together “are not comparable” to the size of the Russian army.
The Ukrainian President said European nations must spend more on defence, echoing the calls made by NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and the US.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky said: “Real brigades in Europe is about 82 and we [Ukraine] have 110.
“Even together, we are not comparable with Russian army.”
He warned Russia has 220 brigades and is growing in size through increased mobilisation.
He said Europe and Ukraine must “increase together”.
Zelensky said: “We have to find money for a bigger army for Ukraine and also we have to find the possibility how to increase production and increase armies in Europe.”
Russia is now spending more on defence than the whole of Europe combined, according to latest figures by the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank.
US Vice President JD Vance and Rutte met in Munich and reiterated calls for NATO to spend more.
“We want to make sure that NATO is actually built for the future, and we think a big part of that is ensuring that NATO does a little bit more burden sharing in Europe, so the United States can focus on some of our challenges in East Asia,” Vance told Rutte.
The NATO chief agreed that Europe needed to step up. He said: “We have to grow up in that sense and spend much more.”
He told reporters on Thursday that NATO should be spending “more than 3% at least”.
Latest NATO figures show 23 out of the alliance’s 32 members are hitting the target of spending 2% of GDP on defence.
The UK currently spends around 2.3%.
Donald Trump wants to see the alliance spending 5% – something no member is currently achieving.
Zelensky also met Vance whilst in Munich and discussed a potential peace deal with Russia.
He wrote on X: “We are ready to move as quickly as possible towards a real and guaranteed peace. We deeply value President Trump’s determination, which can help stop the war and secure justice and security guarantees for Ukraine.”
