Russian President Vladimir Putin announced, on the evening of Monday 21 February, that he would recognise the independence of the ‘People’s Republics’ of Donestk and Luhansk. The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, immediately reacted to the Russian announcement, calling the recognition “a flagrant violation of international law, the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the Minsk agreements”. They warned, via their Twitter accounts, that the EU and its partners would react with “unity, firmness and determination in full solidarity with Ukraine”.
Shortly before his speech, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, had threatened Russia, on Monday 21 February, with sanctions if the Russian government recognised the independence of the two regions.
A few days ago, the Russian Duma asked Vladimir Putin to recognise the independence of these regions and on Monday 21 February, the ‘leaders’ of these two territories also called for this recognition. The High Representative had denounced the Duma’s vote.
In the event of recognition, “we are ready to act in a strong and united manner”, warned Mr Borrell at the end of the Foreign Affairs Council of the EU. He added that in case of annexation of these regions, “there would certainly be sanctions” and that in case of recognition, he would present sanctions and the ministers would decide.
Member States could work from the sanctions package prepared in case of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. “We have a package. It includes elements that can be implemented to some degree depending on the action. This is what will be presented to the ministers”, explained Mr Borrell.
The High Representative also warned that if Russia carried out an attack from Belarusian territory or if Belarus participated, the EU would impose sanctions on Minsk.
Earlier in the day, ministers were divided on the adoption of measures, ahead of the announcements related to the independence of the regions. The Lithuanian and Latvian ministers, Gabrielius Landsbergis and Edgars Rinkēvičs, had argued for adoption now, considering that Russia was already carrying out attacks against Ukraine. “We don’t need to wait for an attack [to adopt sanctions - editor’s note]. Ukraine is already under attack”, said Mr Landsbergis on his arrival at the EU Council, underlining the economic pressure and the “campaign of terror” facing the country, “surrounded by a foreign army”. According to the minister, “Russia has a huge arsenal of what it can deploy before a military attack”.
Other ministers said that 100% dialogue was the way to go. “If there were to be an invasion of Ukraine, very significant sanctions would follow, but I think the way to prevent a war is to talk and find compromises and ways to move forward and prevent the invasion, that has to be the priority today”, explained Ireland’s Simon Coveney.
Additional support for Ukraine
The ministers also gave additional support to Ukraine. They agreed in principle to a military training advisory mission, carried out in the framework of the European Peace Facility. “We have reached an agreement in principle with the EU for the EU to play an advisory training role in Ukraine...it is not about combat forces”, announced the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Dmytro Kuleba, who attended part of the EU Council. However, according to the minister, the details, parameters and timing need to be defined.
The High Representative also announced additional support in the fight against cyber attacks and disinformation, with the sending of a European mission.
In support of Ukraine, the EU Council approved, as well, macro-financial assistance of €1.2 billion in the form of loans (see EUROPE 12892/11). The current geopolitical tensions are having a negative effect on the country’s economic and financial stability, he said, with continuing threats to Ukraine’s security having already led to a significant outflow of capital. The first tranche of €600 million will be disbursed soon after the entry into force of the Memorandum of Understanding on specific structural measures, to be concluded between the EU and Ukraine. The disbursement of the second instalment will be linked, among other things, to the implementation of these measures in areas such as strengthening economic resilience and stability, governance and the Rule of law, and energy.
See the macro-financial proposal (https://aeur.eu/f/fd ) and the ex ante evaluation (https://aeur.eu/f/eq ).
The EU also announced the provision of emergency civil protection assistance (see other news).
Mr Kuleba also explained that he had asked his counterparts to give Ukraine a European perspective. “The best strategic decision the EU could take for appeasement to improve the security situation is to send a clear message to Russia that Ukraine is part of it”, he explained. Asked about this, the High Representative said that Ukraine’s European perspective was “clear” and that the EU was helping the country to make the necessary reforms before moving towards this perspective. “This does not mean that we are going to propose membership tomorrow, but we want Ukraine to be a like-minded partner”, Mr Borrell warned.
The High Representative also recalled that European diplomats did not leave the country. Thus, according to Mr Borrell, 26 embassies and the EU delegation in Ukraine remain open in Kiev. The Netherlands, for its part, decided to relocate its embassy to Lviv. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant with Mathieu Bion)