European Union leaders will meet in Brussels from next Thursday for a two-day summit, which will discuss Ukraine’s security future, as well as the latest developments in the war. Also on the agenda is the subject of migration and a discussion about China.
The summit will begin with the participation of NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in a working lunch with the heads of state and government of the 27 countries on 12 July in Vilnius, Lithuania.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will attend the summit via video conference from Kyiv. The debate on Ukraine will revolve around a discussion of territory defense. According to European sources heard by DN, there will be a ruling on the EU’s contribution to “security commitments” regarding Ukraine.
“The European Union and the Member States are ready to contribute with partners to future security obligations for Ukraine,” reads the latest draft of the summit’s conclusions, already read by DN.
However, at this stage it is not yet clear what the contribution of the European Union will be. The position of Hungary, which has refused to support Ukraine militarily and has declared itself neutral, is also not yet clear. Austria, Ireland and Malta are traditionally neutral countries.
A European source added that this is a proposal launched “by France” and would go through bilateral and multilateral agreements, with the aim of helping Ukraine “defend itself in the long term, deter aggression and destabilize attempts”. to resist.” “.
As part of these commitments, “the security and defense policies of certain Member States” will be safeguarded, the document says, in which the 27 pledge to “consider rapidly the modalities of this contribution”.
The reconstruction of Ukraine
The debate over the use of Russian assets frozen abroad is one of the controversial topics on the table. One of the various modalities considered is the application of taxes to excessive profits from the assets of the Central Bank of Russia seized by the European Union.
However, it is not clear to what extent it will be possible to move the measure forward as it raises “legal questions” that need to be considered, according to a diplomatic source interviewed by DN.
migrations
Also on the first day of the summit, the issue of migration will be discussed. After the most recent tragedy in which more than 600 people died in the Mediterranean, the European Union will reaffirm its “commitment” to fight human trafficking. According to a working paper seen by DN, it will be stated that “migration is a European challenge that requires a European response”.
However, some leaders are dissatisfied with the way the recently approved migration policy, which divides responsibility between all 27 countries, including those that refuse to take in migrants, namely Poland and Hungary, is dissatisfied.
These two countries support an initiative proposed in a letter to the European Council calling for the introduction of “innovative solutions” to tackle migration. The charter has been signed by countries such as Denmark, Greece, Austria, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Malta, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. This initiative also received support from the Netherlands.
However, several countries oppose the introduction of “ambiguous language” in the text of the conclusions and reject the initiative because they “do not understand what they mean by innovative solutions”. It is in this group that Portugal is found, along with Germany, Luxembourg, France and also Portugal.
China
On Friday, the 27 will debate the competitiveness of the European Union and, in this context, China
Despite the growing tension and Beijing’s strategic ambiguity, in the face of the war in Ukraine, the European Council maintains the multifaceted approach of viewing China as “at once partner, competitor and systemic rival”.
The European Council should also express an interest in “pursuing constructive and stable relations”, despite their “different political and economic systems”.
The 27 will also recall China’s “special responsibility” to “uphold the rules-based international order, the Charter of the United Nations and international law”, and call on “China to put pressure on Russia to to stop offensive warfare, and immediately, to withdraw its troops completely and unconditionally from Ukraine”.
Source: DN
