In the run-up to the European Council meeting on 6 March, which will focus on Ukraine and the defence of Europe, the EU27 are trying to find a common language on these two issues. At a meeting of the Permanent Representatives of the Member States to the EU (Coreper) on Tuesday 4 March, the revised draft conclusions (https://aeur.eu/f/FQ1 ) were generally well received. The demands of certain countries have been taken into account in the text, with, for example, an addition to mention the involvement of the “transatlantic partner” in discussions on security guarantees.
EU leaders are also expected to reiterate their commitment to “increase pressure on Russia with a view to weakening its capacity to continue its war of aggression”, a phrase that did not appear in the previous draft conclusions.
At the Coreper meeting on 4 March, some delegations called for stronger language on sanctions against Russia.
The initiative proposed by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, to provide further support to Ukraine was once again discussed by the member states. They agree on the necessary requirements and the EU’s contribution to them, but will not commit to specific amounts.
Above all, the European Council should reiterate the scale of the Union’s support for 2025 with clear figures on which there is consensus among the EU27: €30.6 billion, including €12.5 billion under the Ukraine Facility and €18.1 billion under the loan agreed by the G7.
This comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has announced that he will pause all military aid to Ukraine.
With two days to go before the leaders meet, Coreper still wanted to fine-tune the text of its conclusions on Tuesday 4 March, and had scheduled a further meeting for Wednesday 5 March to approve the conclusions to be presented to the Heads of State or Government.
See the 3 March draft: https://aeur.eu/f/FQ1 (Original version in French by Léa Marchal)