There were times when part of the European elite advocated the creation of a single European army, an essential element of “strategic autonomy”, especially in response to an increasingly uncertain ally – Donald Trump’s United States – and to an Atlantic alliance that he was “brain dead”, as French President Macron put it.
The arrival of Joe Biden to the White House and the Russian invasion of Ukraine revealed evidence that the concept of “strategic autonomy” has not made the headlines and Europe’s dependence on NATO and its most powerful military, the North America. leave. The President of the European Council also recalled the expression after the signing ceremony of a joint statement between the European Union and NATO, but the President of the Commission and the Secretary General of the Atlantic Alliance rather emphasized the intention to strengthen cooperation between the institutions to “the next level” while strengthening support for Ukraine.
The 14-point statement between the political entity and the defense organization recognizes that NATO remains the pillar of European security, despite European efforts to strengthen its role in defense and that not all EU member states fall under the umbrella of the Northern Atlantic treaty. Apart from Finland and Sweden, which depend on Hungarian and Turkish ratification, Austria, Cyprus, Ireland and Malta are not part of NATO.
Partly for this reason, the document claims to “recognize the value of a stronger and more capable European defense that positively contributes to global and transatlantic security and that is complementary to and interoperable with NATO”. The complementarity in “support for international peace and security” between the two Brussels-based organizations was also highlighted. “We will further mobilize the combined set of tools at our disposal, whether political, economic or military, to pursue our common goals for the benefit of our billions of citizens.”
Facing “the most serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security in decades”, the joint document – the third since 2016 – reiterates “unwavering and continued” support for Ukraine and condemns Russia, but also mentions China and its “growing assertiveness” as a challenge to take on, a point after mentioning indefinite “authoritarian actors” who challenge the “interests, values and principles of democracy”.
For now, and specifically, NATO and the EU want to step up their joint work to protect critical infrastructure, address space challenges and counter disinformation, having already achieved coordination on cyber defense and troop deployment.
At the press conference following the signing of the declaration, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen advocated strengthening aid to Ukraine. In recent days, France, Germany and the United States have pledged to send Western-made armored fighting vehicles, a novelty that represents “breaking a taboo,” as Ukrainian diplomat Dmytro Kuleba described it.
Following these announcements, the British press reported that London is considering reinforcing the Ukrainian army with Challenger 2 tanks. And Sweden, as if answering Stoltenberg’s call, announced the dispatch of an Archer artillery system. “We have hesitated for too long. We do not understand that if Ukraine does not have the necessary military equipment to win on the battlefield, this war will drag on, which will only benefit Vladimir Putin,” said the minister. of Foreign Affairs from Sweden Tobias Billstrom.
This hesitation was again criticized by Kuleba. During a surprise visit by his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock to Kharkiv – the furthest eastward foray by a foreign politician since the invasion – the Ukrainian minister said he had no doubt that Berlin would eventually move the Leopard tanks Kiev is so desperately asking for. but that “the longer it takes to decide, the more people will die”.
Next week, the group of Ukraine’s partner nations will meet at Ramstein, a US-run base in Germany, to determine future military support to Kiev.
Mercenaries could take their first victory in six months
After the Ukrainian president said that in Soledar, a place in Donetsk under Russian attack, there is “almost no life”, the deputy defense minister acknowledged the situation of “desperate struggle” of his soldiers, as Moscow hopes to finally achieve. a victory on the ground, the first in half a year.
“The fierce struggle continues,” said Deputy Minister Hanna Malyar. “Only a very strong nation can fight so desperately against such a great and powerful enemy,” he continued. Soledar, like the city of Bakhmut, a dozen kilometers away, suffers from the Russian war doctrine.
The large-scale bombing destroyed buildings and infrastructure, to the point where “not a single wall was left standing”, as Volodymyr Zelensky described it. “And what does Russia want to gain from this? Everything is completely destroyed, there is almost no life left. That is madness,” the Ukrainian president described.
Those trying to conquer the city are the “best” mercenaries of the Wagner group, according to Kiev. It was the head of the militia itself, Yevgeny Prigozhin, who announced that the attack was carried out by the group that employs prisoners among the elite troops to feed the attack waves (the so-called cannon fodder).
His mercenaries want to take over the 200 kilometers of tunnels from the salt and gypsum mining period, not only under the city, but throughout the Bakhmut area. Access to the tunnels could provide a strategic secret transport route for Ukrainian artillery.
The British Ministry of Defense intelligence has indicated that Soledar is already “probably” majority-owned by Russian forces. The impact on neighboring Bakhmut is uncertain. For London, the city has “deep and stable lines of defence”, and the Ukrainians retain control of essential supply routes.
Source: DN
