European Union leaders await Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski on Thursday with the joint message of a pledge of unity «to the end» to support Kiev, for as long as it takes, in the face of Russian aggression.
In statements ahead of the European Council, the leaders stressed the symbolism of the presence of the Ukrainian leader at the summit of the EU-27, an appointment that comes after having spoken telematically at the last six meetings of the heads of state and government of the EU.
The President of France, Emmanuel Macron, who the day before received Zelenski in Paris together with the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has defended on his arrival the strategic importance of this three-way meeting to «show the unity» of support «until the end» with Ukraine and to listen in detail what are the «needs and strategy» of the Ukrainians.
In this context, Macron has insisted that «Russia cannot and must not win» the war and that Ukraine must be listened to carefully on «how it wants to resist and carry out its operations in the coming months.» «The coming weeks and months will be decisive, we must privilege useful shipments to carry out these operations and resist, rather than making commitments that will come too late. It is necessary to see what can be sent in the short term,» he concluded.
The French president also referred to the possibilities of peace to make clear the commitment to «help, resist and succeed» on the side of Ukraine so that negotiations can take place «in the most useful and positive framework» for Kiev.
On his side, the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, emphasized in declarations to the press that the meeting of the Twenty-seven with Zelenski sends a «signal of unity, solidarity and support», reiterating that Europe will defend the independence and integrity of Ukraine «as long as necessary».
The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, has called the summit «unique and exceptional» because of Zelenski’s presence, and considered it an occasion for the EU to show that it is «more united than ever.» «The time is now», he stressed, to affirm that it is now «really important» to increase the efforts of the Member States to support Ukraine with military means and political support in the face of the warlike pulse posed by Russia.
On the part of Portugal, the Prime Minister, Antonio Costa, seconded Macron’s message that the conflict in Ukraine is entering a «key moment» in which Kiev has «a lot at stake in the coming months» and therefore advocated «optimizing efforts to Ukraine so that it can win the war», underlining the provisioning of Leopard tanks by Lisbon.
For the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, this appointment «is worth more than ten online meetings». «We see the dedication and trust in their eyes and it inspires us all,» he stressed. The Baltic leader has insisted on continuing to give support to Ukraine on all fronts, thus he has called for taking steps towards Ukraine’s accession to the EU and that by the end of this year «decisions» can be «taken» and measures against Russia can be strengthened in view of the tenth package of sanctions. «Big steps are more effective than small ones, but small ones are better than nothing,» he summed up.
In the same vein, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas called for an increase in arms production and proposed a European mechanism for joint arms purchases to supply Kiev, following the example of European efforts with vaccines during the pandemic. «In this way we will speed up the process so that Ukraine will have the military assistance it needs in a matter of months and not years,» he summed up.
Meanwhile, the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, stressed that Zelenski’s visit is a «very good occasion» to express the solidarity and unity of the Union as a whole in the face of Russia’s «unjustified» aggression.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
