EU joins forces with Zelensky in the face of Trump's attacks

BrusselsMessage of unity and support from the European Union for Ukraine. On the third anniversary of the start of the war And in the face of Donald Trump's attacks, several European leaders travelled to the Ukrainian capital on Monday and staged a common front with Volodymyr Zelensky. They announced a new payment to Kiev of 3.5 billion euros, approved The sixteenth package of sanctions against Russia and have raised the tone against the United States' willingness to leave Ukraine and Europe out of potential peace negotiations. "In a challenging geopolitical context, we want to make clear the importance of maintaining global and transatlantic solidarity with Ukraine. [...] We stand firmly by your side," concludes a joint statement by the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, António Costa.

In turn, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has thanked this Monday for "three years of resistance" and the "absolute heroism" of the Ukrainians, and has celebrated the good reception that the international summit has had, which aims to remind Trump and Putin at the helm of his allies. The summit is therefore attended by 22 of the 27 European commissioners of the Community executive and some thirteen heads of state and government, including the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, and the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez. In addition, other heads of government are expected to participate remotely.

The meeting comes at a time of fragile transatlantic relations, when the UN will debate two conflicting resolutions: one presented by the United States calling for an end to the war and which does not include any reference to the territorial integrity of Ukraine; and another presented by Kiev and supported by 50 states, which speaks of ending the war this year and demands an immediate end to the aggression and the withdrawal of Russian troops. As for the EU, it has clearly positioned itself in favour of the second option and on Monday strongly criticised Trump's intentions.

In this regard, the head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, has criticized that in "Trump's narrative" there are "strongly represented the messages" that the Kremlin sends, and has assured that no peace agreement will be closed without the participation of Kiev or Brussels. With the same tone against Trump, she reproached him for accusing Zelenski of being a "dictator" because he is governing with an extended mandate and elections are not being called due to the exceptional situation that the war represents. "When I heard this, I thought that [Trump] was making a mistake and confusing two people, because Russia has not had elections in 25 years and Zelenski was elected in free and fair elections," said the community leader.

In fact, it should be remembered that Trump lied when he assured that Zelenski's popularity is 4% and that, for this reason, he is not calling elections. In fact, several surveys show that it easily exceeds 50% of popular support, a figure that is difficult to see in other European countries.. The actions and words of the Trump administration, which wants to negotiate an end to the war without Kiev or the EU, are giving wings to Moscow, which has been suggesting for months that elections should be held in Ukraine as part of any truce agreement. And, according to several experts consulted in recent days by ARA, holding elections right now in Ukraine, in the midst of the war, would pose multiple logistical and security challenges and risks.

More aid in Ukraine and more sanctions against Russia

The aid announced on Monday by Von der Leyen is intended to send a signal that the EU remains committed to supporting Ukraine "for as long as necessary" and despite Washington's threats. To date, the European bloc is already the ally that has contributed the most to the defence of the Ukrainian country, a total of 135 billion euros. "We must accelerate the immediate delivery of weapons and ammunition," said the president of the European Commission.

In addition to this money, Sánchez has announced new aid from Spain to Ukraine worth 1 billion euros. In fact, it is part of the bilateral agreement signed by Kiev and Madrid last year, when the Spanish government already supplied another 1 billion euros of aid. "Ukraine must win a fair and lasting peace," tweeted the socialist leader from the international summit in Kiev.

The foreign ministers meeting on Monday at the EU Council in Brussels also ratified the approval of the sixteenth package of sanctions against Russia. Among others, the new sanctions include more measures againstThe so-called Russian "ghost fleet"and the ships that help Vladimir Putin's regime to avoid sanctions on its oil, as well as the ban on importing aluminium from Russia and exporting oil and gas refining services.

In addition, EU foreign ministers have discussed the intention to approve a new military aid package for Ukraine worth around 20 billion euros. Among other things, the aid would be based mainly on the delivery of artillery and missiles to Ukrainian troops. Although the ministers have not reached an agreement on Monday, the head of European diplomacy has said that she hopes that European leaders will definitively sign it at the summit to be held in Brussels on 6 March. "The problem is that we do not have time," said Kallas, who has urged member states to finalise the delivery of new aid to Ukraine as soon as possible.