Europe's support for Ukraine must remain limitless and include the possibility of deploying troops in the future, the head of European Union (EU) diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, told several media on Sunday December 1st. According to her, this approach would make it possible to preserve an essential strategic ambiguity vis-à-vis Russia.
Former Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas took office as High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy this Sunday 1 December, succeeding Josep Borrell.
Famous for her firm stances towards Russia, a country bordering Estonia, she reaffirmed her convictions on this subject during her confirmation hearing in the European Parliament last month.
During the first day of their mandates, Kaja Kallas, European Council President António Costa and Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos visited Ukraine to express their support for the country at war against the Russian invader.
Send troops to Ukraine
On board the night train to Ukraine, Kaja Kallas said the European Union should not rule out any option, including sending European troops, to help enforce a possible ceasefire in the future.
Indeed, the High Representative of the EU stressed that Europe should “play a role” if a ceasefire was reached and it was necessary to send troops to verify that it was respected.
“In any case, the choice remains in Ukraine’s hands”she remarked.
“So far, discussions have focused on which countries would be willing to send soldiers to Ukraine and which would not. I think nothing should be excluded”she continued.
“We should maintain strategic ambiguity on this subject. »
On November 29, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky appeared to change his stance on possible ceasefire talks, calling on NATO to offer partial protection of Ukrainian territory. He proposes to “place under the aegis of NATO” the territories controlled by kyiv in order to “put an end to the hot phase of the war”.
“If we talk about a ceasefire [nous avons besoin] guarantees that [Vladimir] Putin will not return,” he told Sky News in an interview.
Asked about this recent change in Ukrainian position, Kaja Kallas stressed that “the strongest security guarantee is NATO membership”.
“We absolutely need to discuss this — if Ukraine decides to draw the line somewhere, how can we ensure peace so that [Vladimir] Putin doesn’t go any further”she said.
However, NATO diplomats have been warning for months that there was little chance Ukraine would receive an invitation to join the military alliance. Several alliance members, including the United States and Germany, have insisted they do not want to be drawn into a potential war with Russia.
Kaja Kallas also said the EU would seek to “build bridges” and would use a “transactional language” to try to convince the American administration of Donald Trump that it is in Washington's interest to support kyiv.
“Aid to Ukraine is not charity”she stressed. “A Victory for Emboldened Russia[rait] definitely China, Iran and North Korea, which already operate together. »
“But when I hear the stories from member states [de l’UE] who have had discussions with the Trump administration […] well, they no longer say it's so easy to end this war”recognized the Estonian politician.
Kaja Kallas also warned of the dangers of too soon a ceasefire to end the war, citing the decade of Russian aggression in Ukraine since the annexation of Crimea in 2014.
“Between 2014 and 2022, we have had several ceasefires, and what we have seen is that Russia is not respecting the terms of these ceasefires, and we have had more wars”she said.
The head of European diplomacy said that the EU would continue to seek to place Ukraine in the position “the strongest” possible with a view to possible negotiations with Moscow — if and when kyiv chooses.
Asked by Euractiv what more the EU could do to materially support Ukraine, Kaja Kallas admitted that he was becoming “more and more difficult” to achieve unity on the issue within the bloc.
“This war has been going on for some time and it is increasingly difficult to explain it to our fellow citizens”she said.
Emmanuel Macron does not rule out sending troops to Ukraine
27 heads of state and government gathered in Paris for a conference in support of Ukraine said they were ready to buy munitions produced in third countries. Emmanuel Macron clarified that sending troops to Ukraine could not be ruled out.
[Édité par Anne-Sophie Gayet]
