Mitt Romney exclusive: Damage caused to Russia makes Ukraine investment worth it

The United States must continue to fund Ukraine’s war effort, because “decimating the Russian military” while using just five per cent of the US defence budget is an “extraordinarily wise investment”, Mitt Romney has said.

The GOP grandee, who announced on Wednesday that he will not stand for re-election as Senator for Utah, hit back at critics within his own party who have argued that America cannot afford to keep funding Ukraine’s army, telling the Telegraph: “The idea that it’s too expensive is a little funny.

“We spend about $850 billion (£685 billion) a year on defence. We’re using about five per cent of that to help Ukraine. My goodness, to defend freedom and to decimate the Russian military – a country with 1,500 nuclear weapons aimed at us.

“To be able to do that with five per cent of your military budget strikes me as an extraordinarily wise investment and not by any means something we can’t afford.”

Since the war began 18 months ago, the Biden administration and US Congress have sent more than $75 billion on assistance to Ukraine, which includes humanitarian, financial, and military support.

By comparison, the EU as a whole has given roughly the same, while the UK is the second largest individual state donor, committing £4.6 billion in military assistance to Ukraine so far.

But Russia has now lost more than 2,300 tanks and hundreds of other armoured vehicles and artillery pieces, as well as dozens of attack helicopters, bombers and fighter jets. It has also suffered heavy casualties to its infantry forces.