(Granada) Gathered in southern Spain around Volodymyr Zelensky, European leaders sent a signal on Thursday about an increase in military aid to Ukraine in the face of fears of a reduction in American support due to the political crisis in Washington.
The Ukrainian president said the same day that he had received “clear agreements” from the Europeans to receive more anti-aircraft and artillery systems.
“We will have more air defense – the agreements are clear. This is very important before winter. Spain, Italy, France, Germany, Great Britain – thank you! “, Mr. Zelensky said in his daily message broadcast on social networks.
Following bilateral meetings, the Ukrainian head of state received in Grenada from his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron the promise of “unfailing” support […] as long as it takes” and from Berlin that of a new American Patriot air defense system.
Germany will do “everything” so that “Ukraine can protect itself from the terror of Putin’s rockets,” added German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock in the evening.
But even if they promise more aid, the Europeans are not intended to replace the Americans, warned the head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, arriving at this third summit of the Political Community European.
“Europe is increasing its aid”, with a package of 50 billion euros in discussions, but “will Europe be able to fill the void left by the United States? Obviously, Europe cannot replace the United States,” which is by far the main suppliers of arms to Ukraine, insisted the Spaniard.
The only discordant note in this European unanimity around the Ukrainian president, Slovakia announced on Thursday that it would freeze its decisions on military aid to Ukraine, pending the constitution of the future government of Robert Fico, considered pro-Russian.
“Dangerous situation”
In an interview with some media, including AFP, Volodymyr Zelensky acknowledged that the political crisis in the United States was “dangerous” for Ukraine, but that the latter was “ready to confront (it)”.
However, he assured that he had “bi-partisan” support in Washington and said “he hopes that the United States and Europe will once again be on Ukraine’s side” with a view to emerging from this crisis.
The continuation of American aid to Kyiv is suspended following the ongoing political crisis in Washington, which led to the ouster on Tuesday of the Republican leader of the House of Representatives, Kevin McCarthy, due to a revolt of the right wing of his party opposed to the release of funds for Ukraine.
Because if Congress does not adopt, within a month and a half, an annual budget including a new envelope for Ukraine, Washington will only be able to support it for “a few more months”, according to the White House.
Russian President Vladimir Putin, for his part, estimated that Ukraine would only have “one week to live” without Western arms deliveries.
Flop on Nagorno-Karabakh
Highly anticipated in Nagorno-Karabakh, two weeks after the lightning offensive by Azerbaijani forces which pushed almost the entire Armenian population to flee, this summit of the European Political Community will not have kept its promises.
A meeting between the Azerbaijani President, Ilham Aliev, and the Armenian Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinian, was to be one of the high points.
But the strong man from Baku, annoyed by European signs of support for Armenia, announced on Wednesday that he would not go to Granada. His main supporter, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, also failed.
An absence, in the form of a setback for the CPE, which Emmanuel Macron declared to “deeply regret”.
“We must continue to discuss,” then noted the French president, according to whom “the time is not for sanctions” against Azerbaijan, while the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, announced that he had invited MM. Aliev and Pashinian in Brussels by the end of October.
The objective of the CPE, imagined by Emmanuel Macron, is to bring together people beyond the European Union: in addition to the 27 members of the bloc, 20 states were invited to this summit.
Behind this acronym, we find countries with radically different trajectories towards the EU: declared (and impatient) candidates for membership, countries which know that the door is closed to them for a long time and the United Kingdom United, which chose to leave the EU with a bang seven years ago.
Migration crisis
His Prime Minister Rishi Sunak chose this forum to try to place, with his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, the migration crisis at the heart of the debates.
While awaiting the finalization of a laborious reform of the European migration system, Italy and the United Kingdom, whose representatives met on the sidelines of the summit with French, Belgian, Albanian and Dutch leaders to make common commitments in this area, want to act as quickly as possible.
“Fighting illegal immigration is a common European challenge. The numbers are increasing everywhere. And I think, like other European leaders, that it is up to us to decide who should come to our countries and not to criminal groups of smugglers, the head of the British government told AFP.