Seven EU countries to provide EUR 15 billion in aid to Ukraine
7 March 08:37
During the Special European Council, 7 EU member states pledged to provide Ukraine with additional financial and military assistance of 15 billion euros. This was announced in Brussels during a press conference following the meeting of the Special European Council by European Council President Antonio Costa, Komersant ukrainskyi reports citing Ukrinform.
“First of all, the best guarantee of security for Ukraine is Ukraine itself. Since February 24, 2022, the Ukrainian army has been resisting. Many people were convinced that they (Ukrainians) would not be able to resist for more than three days, then for more than three weeks. Now they have been resisting for over three years. We have stood by Ukraine from the beginning, and we will continue this support after the war, as a future member of the European Union. We have also decided to explore our capabilities under the EU Agreement to contribute to security guarantees,” said Mr. Costa.
He emphasized that security guarantees for the future of Ukraine are very important for the security of Europe and for international security.
President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen added that a new financial instrument being developed by the European Commission will provide member states with the opportunity to obtain the necessary military capabilities through a joint order, which can then be transferred to Ukraine.
Examples of such actions are the Danish initiative to develop defense production in Ukraine or the Czech initiative to supply ammunition.
“That is, these initiatives already define legal procedures, and now, with 150 billion euros, it will be easier to do so. A certain part of this money should be allocated to provide military capabilities for Ukraine. This is also a big push forward to support this outstanding army,” Ursula von der Leyen said.
Orban blocks 20 billion euros of aid to Ukraine
EU leaders failed to agree on a €20 billion aid package for Ukraine at a summit in Brussels on March 6, Politico reports .
According to the publication, before the meeting of the leaders, EU diplomat Kaja Kallas proposed to allocate at least 20 billion euros in EU military aid in 2025. Traditionally, the position of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban stood in the way.
“The discussion on defense lasted almost 10 hours, with leaders debating how to finance the €800 billion defense buildup and how much of their investment should come from European sources rather than non-EU sources. However, according to one EU diplomat, the talks on Ukraine were concluded in about 15 minutes. That says it all,” Politico writes.
Support for Ukraine
on March 6, EU leaders also expressed support for Ukraine, but this statement was agreed without the leadership of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a Trump ally.
In their statement, the 26 other EU leaders emphasized that there can be no negotiations on Ukraine without Ukraine and pledged to continue to provide assistance to Ukraine, according to a recent draft.
“We are here to defend Ukraine,” said Antonio Costa, who chaired the meeting.
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“Coalition of the willing”
The initiative is led by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Its discussion intensified after a public conflict between US President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office of the White House.
The peacekeeping force led by the United Kingdom and France may include contingents from several European countries that will be deployed on the territory of Ukraine (but not on the contact line) in the event of a truce or peace agreement. The presence of Western troops is expected to be a deterrent to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who could use the pause to regroup his forces and make a new attempt to conquer Ukraine.
However, the key issue remains the security guarantees for this mission, which are demanded by future peacekeepers, primarily from the United States. The absence of such guarantees has already become one of the reasons for the dispute between Trump and Zelenskyy, which arose over the mineral resources agreement between Ukraine and the United States.
Starmer said that the UK, France, and Ukraine are working on a peace agreement to be presented to Washington.
Reaction and prospects
Meanwhile, US Vice President J.D. Vance expressed skepticism about the initiative. He stated that American economic interests in Ukraine are “a better guarantee of security than 20,000 troops from some random country that hasn’t been at war in the last 30-40 years.”
This statement drew sharp criticism both in the UK and among American Democrats. Vance was reminded that Canadian, British, and French troops fought alongside the United States in Afghanistan, and the United Kingdom also participated in the invasion of Iraq.
The concept of a “coalition of the willing” implies that NATO member states will be able to act together, but not within the framework of the Alliance. This will avoid political contradictions, as Hungary and Slovakia have taken a pro-Russian position and are blocking consensus among the allies.
At the same time, the Baltic states-Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia, as well as Finland-have expressed interest in joining the British-French initiative. In addition, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said that his country is also ready to consider the participation of its peacekeepers in Ukraine.
Moscow has already rejected the idea of deploying any peacekeeping force, whether from NATO, the EU, or any other format.
