(Versailles) Doubling of funding for arms to Ukraine, threats of new “massive” sanctions against Moscow, the Europeans meeting at a summit in Versailles further increased pressure on Russia on Friday to end its military offensive.
Posted at 12:34 p.m.
” Yes [le président russe Vladimir] Putin intensifies the bombings, lays siege to Kyiv, if he further escalates the scenes of war, we know that we will have to take massive sanctions again,” French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters after two days. meeting with European leaders.
These sanctions would go beyond those of the G7 and the EU announced by Washington on Friday, which notably include the exclusion of the normal regime of reciprocity governing world trade, paving the way for the imposition of punitive customs tariffs.
Emmanuel Macron has not ruled out that the EU could later attack gas or oil imports, which have so far been spared because of their cost for Europeans, who are very dependent on Russian hydrocarbons.
“Nothing is forbidden, nothing is taboo,” he said.
The Twenty-Seven have already adopted unprecedented financial and economic sanctions which have led to a collapse of the rouble.
The head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell also proposed on Friday to the heads of state and government of the EU gathered at the Château de Versailles, near Paris, to double European funding intended to arm Ukraine, despite the bets in custody of Moscow.
Mr. Borrell announced that he had “made a proposal to double the contribution [de l’UE] with 500 million euros more for armaments in support of the Ukrainian army”. It will still have to be adopted by the Member States.
Funding comes from the “European Peace Facility”, a fund endowed with 5 billion euros.
A first envelope of 500 million euros, unprecedented in European history for military support, had already been released at the end of February.
This sum is used to reimburse the supplies of armaments withdrawn by the Member States from their stocks.
The Ukrainian government has made very specific requests for equipment that its soldiers are capable of using, including air defense systems and anti-tank weapons, which have been used successfully to halt the advance of Russian troops and deprive them of air supremacy.
These weapons are transported to Ukraine via Poland.
“Dangerous Deliveries”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned Thursday that such deliveries were “dangerous” and threatened Westerners. “Those who are arming Ukraine must of course understand that they will bear responsibility for their actions,” he said.
The 27 EU states were also pleased to have found a compromise, after difficult discussions overnight, on the political message to be sent to the former Soviet republic regarding its plan to join The union.
Divided on this question, which constitutes a red flag for Moscow, they underlined its membership of the “European family”, without going so far as to formally mention an integration, even remote, into the EU.
Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa did not hide his disappointment: “A large majority [de pays membres] pleaded for a strong political message guaranteeing EU membership”, even if it is “not for tomorrow of course”.
“We have to go harder. This is not what we expect, ”reacted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Ukraine and the EU have already been linked by an association agreement since 2014. This agreement “can be reinforced, consolidated”, explained the President of the European Council Charles Michel.
Integration into the EU is a process that takes years to bring the legislation of the candidate country closer to European law. It requires complex negotiations on many subjects and criteria that are difficult for a country at war to meet, such as political stability and a functioning market economy.
It also requires the unanimous agreement of the 27 member countries.
European leaders also discussed the European Commission’s plan to reduce by two-thirds, starting this year, the EU’s dependence on Russian gas, which today represents 40% of its consumption.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said she will propose the goal of EU independence from Russian fossil fuels by 2027.