EU leaders highlighted their unity on the Ukraine-Russia issue at the end of their one-hour informal meeting on Thursday 17 February alongside the EU-African Union summit. The situation in eastern Ukraine is unstable, with attacks on the front line.
“European unity is strong, and solid”, explained the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, at the end of the meeting, which took stock of the latest developments. According to Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, the leaders reaffirmed their unity “not only in the EU, but also with NATO members and others”.
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said that there were still risks to European security and that “effective coordination” and “visible unity” should be pursued during the crisis, to “strengthen the security of the whole Euro-Atlantic area”.
For his part, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda welcomed the visits of the French President and the German Chancellor to Russia, explaining that it is “important to have direct contacts and to understand Putin’s intentions. It is also an opportunity to send a message of unity. This firm stance is the best deterrent”, he added.
And for the Polish Prime Minister, Mateusz Morawiecki, this international unity has an impact on the Russian President. “I think he does care about it. Our unity surprised him. He hoped for divisions among Western countries, within NATO and the EU. He is now faced with a very united front, with one voice, with diplomatic actions and also with the set of sanctions that are being prepared”, he summarised.
While the situation on the ground is volatile, the leaders pleaded for continued diplomacy while reiterating their readiness to take sanctions if necessary. “We want to continue to believe that diplomatic efforts can eventually lead to more positive tangible results”, Michel said. “Diplomacy has not yet said its last word. We still have hope that peace will prevail”, stressed the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. For Mr Draghi, all channels, whether bilateral, within NATO, the OSCE or the Normandy format, should be used.
And if diplomacy were to fail, Europe would crack down with sanctions. “The European Council will act quickly if Russia aggravates the situation. I think this will be the mother of all sanctions”, stressed Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, explaining that, while the 2014 sanctions are already having an impact on the Russian economy, “this time the cost will be much, much higher”.
High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, warned that in the event of aggression he would immediately convene a Foreign Affairs Council to propose the prepared sanctions package.
EU leaders also stressed their support for Ukraine. For Latvian Prime Minister Krišjānis Kariņš, the Kremlin is not worried about NATO, but about Ukraine’s independence, and it is therefore important to help the country continue its development as a free and independent country. President Nausėda said that Kiev should certainly be given additional support after the EU has just granted it €1.2 billion in aid. In his view, Europeans should be ready to provide all the necessary support, be it financial, energy, military or economic. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)