European Union leaders, including Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, are meeting urgently in Angola to discuss negotiations between Ukraine and the United States for peace. – Frederic Sierakowski // European Council
Brussels, 24 years old (European Press)
European Union leaders on Monday assessed the momentum in negotiations between Ukraine and the United States to end the war launched by Russia, stressing that steps have been taken in the right direction, despite their insistence that the bloc will have the final say on issues such as the application of sanctions on Moscow, the use of frozen Russian assets or Ukraine’s accession to the bloc.
In his statements at the conclusion of the informal meeting of European leaders in Angola, where they are meeting on the occasion of the summit between the European Union and the African Union, European Council President Antonio Costa indicated that the meeting in Geneva between the American and Ukrainian delegations, with the participation of European allies and European Union teams, “constitutes significant progress” in the peace process after the 28-point plan that Washington put in place behind the backs of the Ukrainians and Europeans.
“We welcome this step forward, there are still some issues to be resolved, but the trend is positive,” Costa said, after noting a new momentum in the negotiations and stressing that discussions between the Ukrainians and Americans were “constructive” and “progress” had been achieved on many issues.
However, the community leader reiterated his support for Ukraine, including financial support, and insisted that any solution to the conflict must be “fair” and “lasting.” He stressed that “peace cannot be a temporary truce, but must be a permanent solution. Ukraine has chosen Europe and Europe will be on Ukraine’s side.”
The former Portuguese Prime Minister stressed that the European Union must remain united and must advance the process together with Ukraine and the United States, ensuring that the “common goal” is to stop the “aggressive war against Ukraine.”
The European Union has the final say regarding sanctions and Russian assets
Likewise, Costa stressed that the EU would have the final say on issues directly affecting the bloc and its policies towards Ukraine in the event of “sanctions, enlargement policy or frozen assets.” He stressed that these issues “require the full participation and decision of the European Union,” pointing to coordinated and close work between the European Union, Ukraine, the United States and NATO.
Finally, he wanted to insist that the EU would stay the course on support for Ukraine, ensuring the bloc’s commitment to supporting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, whom he directly cited, for “all the support he needs,” including financial support.
All this while the European Union is discussing new ways to support Kiev financially, and the use of liquidity from Russian assets frozen in Europe has been identified as a new mechanism to support Ukraine over the next two years. “We have committed to compliance and we will commit to it at the European Council in December,” he noted regarding economic support for Ukraine.
VON DER LEYEN believes there is a solid foundation for progress
For her part, the head of the group, Ursula von der Leyen, defended that European coordination “allows for significant progress in the negotiations for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine,” noting that after the Geneva meeting, “there is a solid basis for moving forward.”
Looking at the next steps, the head of the European executive called for unity and putting Ukraine’s interests “at the centre.” “This is about the security of our entire continent, now and in the future,” he noted.
In this sense, he reaffirmed that European red lines require respect for Ukraine’s territory and sovereignty. He noted that “only Ukraine, as a sovereign state, can make decisions regarding its armed forces,” regarding the point of the US plan that determines the size of the Ukrainian army.
At the same time, he argued for maintaining “Eurocentrism” in Ukraine’s future, i.e. supporting its security, announcing a meeting of volunteer coalition partners who were discussing Ukraine’s future security guarantees. He also proposed initiatives so that Ukrainian children “kidnapped and missing” in the context of Russian military aggression can return to their country.
Other European leaders, such as Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, insisted that the basis of the negotiations “requires more work,” noting that some proposals are “simply unacceptable,” especially regarding security.
He explained that “it is particularly important that any agreement does not in any way weaken Poland, Europe, or our security,” stressing that the Europeans must work with the Americans to ensure that the terms of the agreements “do not favor the aggressor,” in reference to Russia.
In the same vein, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warned that there were still “many elements to be discussed” in the peace negotiations in Ukraine, stressing that the agreement reached must guarantee a “permanent” peace and not a “transient” peace.
The meeting, urgently called in Luanda after the first steps in the peace plan presented by Washington, behind the backs of the Ukrainians and Europeans, sought to close ranks in the European Union to promote an agreement that respects Ukrainian standards and takes into account the European security architecture.