The chapter on defense It was unanimously approved by the European Council, while that relating to Ukraine has obtained the consent of 26 Member States, with the exception of the Hungary of Orban. Translated, we cannot speak of a real decision of the Council, which as we well know act only unanimously. Initially, there had also been a veto by Slovakia, under the guidance of Robert Fico, but this was overcome thanks to the insertion of guarantees regarding the transit of gas to Ukraine. The presence of an EU member who seems to take advantage of Moscow (and now also Washington) does not constitute a good sign for the unity of the old continent and above all does not promise anything positive regarding future decisions on foreign policy, which require unanimity. In short, so much casino for a short time.
The plan in the conclusions, however, provides five “principles”: intensification of military aid to Kiev, obligation to involve Ukraine in negotiations, the search for a just peace, “solid and credible” security guarantees and territorial integrity of the invaded country.
The Ukrainian president also attended the top Zelensky who had an hour and a half meeting with European leaders, at the end of which Palazzo Europa has left without issuing a press conference. Kiev’s leader highlighted: “I want to thank all European leaders for the strong support signal. We are very grateful to not be alone. And these are not just words, we hear it. ” The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen stressed that this is a “watershed moment” for Europe and Ukraine. “Europe – he said – faces a clear and present danger, and must be able to protect itself, just as we must put Ukraine in a position to defend ourselves and push for lasting and right peace”.
In the final press releases, the 27 leaders underlined the need to significantly increase the expense for the safety and defense of Europe, positively accepting the suspension of the stability pact thanks to the activation of the national safeguard clause. Further steps were also discussed to undertake to guarantee the sustainability of the debt, so as to facilitate significant expenses for the defense at national level in all Member States. A central point of the discussions was the importance of the defense of borders. However, the idea advanced by French President Emmanuel Macron was not discussed to use nuclear umbrella as an anti-Russia deterrent. Some leaders, however, expressed appreciation for the proposal. Polish premier Donald Tusk said: “We must consider it seriously, because it must be one of our priorities to coordinate all our skills in Europe, which will give us a clear advantage against Russia”. The Lithuanian president Gitanas Nickea added that this proposal “would act as a very serious deterrent towards Russia, and it is essential to exploit this opportunity to increase our resilience, especially on the eastern side”.
During the extraordinary meeting of Brussels, Giorgia Meloni He firmly reiterated his position on two crucial themes for Europe: the use of cohesion funds for the purchase of weapons and the sending of Peacekeeping troops in Ukraine. “We conducted a battle to prevent resources from the cohesion funds from being forcedly diverted to defense expenses” said the Prime Minister, motivating his opposition to any attempt to transfer money intended for social cohesion to finance the defense. On sending troops in Ukraine he then stressed that the proposal does not appear to be effective or simple. “Sending unidentified European troops, whether they are French, British or other countries, is a complex and, in my opinion, not very effective solution,” explained Meloni, adding that the question of peace must be addressed with certain security guarantees, which, according to her, can only come through the Atlantic alliance.
Meloni categorically excluded the possibility that Italian troops can be involved on a mission in Ukraine. “We must think of more lasting solutions than the sending of troops,” he reiterated, indicating the need to face the conflict with a strategy that goes beyond the use of soldiers on the field. Another theme addressed by the premier concerns the Peacekeeping missions of the United Nations. “I’m another thing,” he specified. “They only intervene when there is already an ongoing peace process, but this is not the case of Ukraine,” he observed, expressing strong doubts about the proposal to send Peacekeeping forces to Ukraine in the absence of a political solution to the conflict. “On this proposal I continue to feed great perplexities,” concluded the government leader.
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