Denmark, Norway and Japan are partners of Ukraine that deserve separate attention.

These three states, by the amount of state assistance provided to Kyiv, top the list following the EU, USA, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

Moreover, they were the first among other countries to implement long-term support programmes for Ukraine and supported the bilateral security agreements.

Read more about their contribution to Ukraine's assistance in the article by Nataliya Butyrska, a New Europe Center associated senior analyst – Underrated partners: How Denmark, Norway and Japan invest in Ukraine's victory.

Denmark is the first country outside the G7 to have signed a bilateral Agreement on security cooperation and long-term support with Ukraine for 10 years.

It played a key role in unlocking the decision to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jets and led the aviation coalition.

In the spring of 2023, Denmark transferred its 19 Caesar howitzers, recently acquired from the French Nexter, which became an important impetus for forming the artillery coalition.

Copenhagen has allocated 4.9 billion euros of financial support (besides funding through EU structures), of which military assistance amounts to 4.5 billion euros. As of today, Denmark has sent 16 packages of military assistance.

Denmark took patronage over Mykolaiv and Mykolaiv Oblast in the spring of 2023 and has since allocated several aid packages totaling $121 million for the region's recovery.

Norway, in turn, participates in three important coalitions: the maritime, co-leading with the UK, the F-16 coalition (donates its aircraft and takes responsibility for training Ukrainian military); and the air defence (NASAMS systems successfully defend Ukrainian airspace).

It was one of the first to have introduced a multi-year support programme for Ukraine with $7.4 billion for 2023-2027 with an equal distribution of funds for military and civilian assistance to Ukraine.

This is the largest aid programme in Norway's history for a country at war.

Norway's revenues have sharply increased since European states gave up exporting Russian energy resources, purchasing more Norwegian oil and gas. Consequently, politicians and the public urge the government to increase assistance to Ukraine using the windfall profits, especially considering the delay and uncertainty of American aid.

The Norwegian government also allowed the direct sale of weapons and defence goods from its defence industry to Ukraine. The relevant changes came into effect on 1 January 2024.

Japan is one of the few Asian countries providing extraordinary assistance to Ukraine – financial, humanitarian and diplomatic.

When it was presiding over G7 last year, Tokyo became the main promoter of Ukraine on all group platforms and beyond, seeking to maintain maximum attention to the Russian-Ukrainian war.

Japan's efforts sharply contrast with the position of the Indian government, which significantly restricted discussions on the Russian-Ukrainian war at G20 venues during its chairmanship last year.

Japan's assistance is mainly focused on financial and humanitarian spheres, significant support for Ukraine's energy system (providing powerful autotransformers, energy equipment, gabions for protecting critical infrastructure), as well as urgent reconstruction issues (assistance to Irpin, Kherson, etc.).

However, its pacifist constitution prohibits military aid.

Nevertheless, the Japanese government made a decision that helped to send drones, body armour, helmets, winter clothing, binoculars, lighting equipment and other non-lethal equipment to the Ukrainian troops.

So, all three states have proven to be reliable partners for Ukraine and have lent a shoulder at a time when support from others was on halt.