The first UE-Ukraine summit since the start of the war will be held on Friday.
by Philippe Jacqué (Brussels, European office) and Virginie Malingre (Brussels, European office)
Send a political signal. This is the number one objective of the trip to Ukraine, Thursday 2 and Friday February 3, of the highest representatives of community institutions. The first day, Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, and about fifteen commissioners, should meet in kyiv ministers of the government of Volodymyr Zelensky, in order to study together current and future cooperation. The next day, a European Union Summit (EU) -ukraine is planned, in which the Ukrainian president will participate, M me von der Leyen and the president of the European Council, Charles Michel.
ursula von der Leyen like Charles Michel have already visited, each on their side, three times in Ukraine. But “it’s the first UE-Ukraine summit since the start of the war,” said Josep Borrell a few days ago, the high representative of the EU. After the visit of Volodymyr Zelensky in Washington, on December 21, 2022, Europeans wanted, in turn, to signify in the world, and more particularly in Moscow, their unwavering support in kyiv.
“If Ukraine can continue this war, it is thanks to the EU”, insists a commissioner. In fact, twenty-seven intend to take advantage of this trip to let it know. Not only do they welcome Ukrainian refugees -there are between 4.5 million and 5 million on their soil -, but they also got hold of the wallet, beyond everything that seemed imaginable at the start of the conflict, especially in military matter. In total, “the help of the EU – humanitarian, financial and military – amounts to 49 billion euros”, summarizes Josep Borrell. “The EU is the first support for Ukraine,” he insists.
join the EU
“We continue to support Ukraine. It was not that obvious. At the start of the war, we had weapons, now we have to produce them. Likewise, we found money in The margins of the community budget, now, is more complicated, “says a diplomat, who also evokes the nine packets of sanctions already taken against Russia – despite the reluctance of some, including Hungary by Viktor Orban – and the tenth in preparation. Without forgetting the granting to kyiv of the status of candidate for the EU in June 2022 in record time, barely four months after his request, when, “before the war, no one imagined that Ukraine could be seriously candidate At the accession to the EU, “continues this source.
Volodymyr Zelensky is a master in the art of keeping under pressure, friendly, its European allies. “He had the tanks, now he wants planes,” comments a source.
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