EU defends ‘tangible’ security guarantees for Ukraine, including troop presence

BRUSSELS, December 15 (EUROPA PRESS) –

European Union foreign ministers opted on Monday for Ukraine to have “tangible” security guarantees, including the presence of troops and military capabilities, to be able to repel future Russian attacks.

On the eve of the Foreign Affairs meeting in Brussels which will discuss concrete security guarantees to be offered to Ukraine, the EU’s high representative for foreign policy, Kaja Kallas, called for “tangible” security guarantees. “It cannot be about papers or promises,” he said in statements upon his arrival.

The meeting coincides with U.S.-led peace negotiations and when Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky travels to Berlin to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other European leaders.

According to Kallas, the guarantees involve “real troops and capabilities” so that Ukraine can defend itself against future attacks by Russian President Vladimir Putin. “We must understand that Donbass is not Putin’s final goal. If he gets Donbass, then the fortress will fall and they will definitely move forward in conquering the whole of Ukraine,” he warned.

In this sense, the former Estonian Prime Minister emphasized that if Ukraine fell, “other regions would also be in danger.” “We know this from history and we must learn from it,” he said.

SECURITY GUARANTEES WITH NUCLEAR UMBRELLA

On the Lithuanian side, Kestutis Budrys opted for Ukraine to benefit from guarantees similar to NATO Article 5, including the nuclear umbrella. “That would be credible, as is the case with NATO. We all understand that deterrence works as long as extended nuclear deterrence is effective,” he said, assuring that there is a risk that Moscow will resort to nuclear coercion against Ukraine.

“We cannot leave this aside and depend only on conventional forces to think about possible scenarios for the future,” he insisted.

In this regard, Polish representative Marcin Bosacki indicated that the United States and Europe are “gradually converging” on security support for kyiv. “We are waiting for good news and, if it comes so soon, maybe even this week, it will be announced today in Berlin,” he said of the negotiations convened by Merz in the German capital.

On the Luxembourg side, Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel warned that Russia only sought to “bring Ukraine to its knees” and make it “as weak as possible during the negotiations”. “Sometimes you feel like they’re abandoning everything they’ve fought for over the last few years, and that wouldn’t be a good thing,” he said.

“Estonia is ready to share the guarantees and take the burden, because it is something we have to do, but we also have to understand that the frozen Russian assets will be the first set of guarantees,” said Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, who showed willingness to provide troops once it is clarified whether the United States supports the guarantees.

Furthermore, Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze regretted that Russia continues not to take the peace talks seriously. “They only want to divide and choose, for NATO to divide, for the EU to divide,” he said.

After Ukraine’s refusal to join NATO was put on the table in peace negotiations, the Latvian minister, a former senior alliance official, insisted that the NATO treaty “remains valid”, “but it will be Ukraine that decides whether to continue to join it or not.”

On this same issue, Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares stressed that NATO membership “is a debate that is the exclusive responsibility of NATO and its allies.” “If President Zelensky makes a sovereign decision as the legitimately elected president of Ukraine, I will respect it in the same way as any entry decision,” he concluded.