On March 2, a summit of European countries took place in the UK to seek a solution to the conflict in Ukraine with a greater role for the "old continent", however, the "shadow" of the US was still present in every discussion.
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| Ukraine summit in London, UK, March 2. (Source: GOV.UK) |
The conference was held in London, chaired by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with the participation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, leaders of many European countries, along with President of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Council Antonio Costa and Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Mark Rutte.
Self-reliance
Speaking after the conference, the British Prime Minister said that his country, along with Ukraine, France and several other countries, would form a “coalition of goodwill” and develop a peace plan to discuss with US President Donald Trump. Although he did not name other countries, the British leader affirmed that many countries were ready to join this coalition.
“We are at a crossroads in history today. This is no time for more talk. It is time for action. It is time to step up, lead and unite around a new plan for a just and lasting peace,” Mr Starmer said.
According to Reuters , this move is considered an important step for Washington to be able to provide the security guarantees that Kiev deems necessary, because the US administration of President Donald Trump has repeatedly stated that Europe needs to play a major role in this issue.
On the same day, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent continued to affirm that Washington wants the European Union (EU), instead of NATO, to provide security guarantees to Ukraine after reaching a ceasefire agreement with Russia.
In addition to developing a peace plan, at the London conference, European leaders also agreed to meet again soon to “keep the momentum behind these activities” and continue to cooperate to build a common plan for a just and lasting peace for Ukraine.
In addition, the UK also announced that it would provide Ukraine with an export credit package worth 1.6 billion pounds ($2.01 billion) to buy more than 5,000 new air defense missiles to help Ukraine have the best position in negotiations with Russia.
Besides the Ukraine issue, increasing the defense budget is also a hot topic of attention for European leaders.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed that European leaders agreed that the "old continent" needs to shoulder more responsibility and "spend more on the defense budget within the NATO framework", while emphasizing the determination to maintain close relations with the US.
EC President Ursula von der Leyen stressed that Europe urgently needs to rearm and EU member states must be given fiscal space to sharply increase defense spending because "a policy of increasing defense investment over the long term is extremely important".
Europe needs to show the United States that the region is ready to defend democracy, she said.
Meanwhile, in an interview with Le Figaro newspaper after the meeting, French President Emmanuel Macron suggested that European countries increase their defense budgets to 3.0 - 3.5% of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to adapt to changing US priorities.
'Shadow' of America
Despite efforts to play a greater role in resolving the conflict in Ukraine, Europe remains unable to separate itself from the United States on this issue.
Speaking on Romanian television, referring to the results of the London summit, Acting President Ilie Bolojan said that Europe could not provide security guarantees to Ukraine without support from the United States.
“These are security guarantees not only for Ukraine, but also for the entire eastern flank, from the Baltic to the Black Sea. Therefore, in order to continue the transatlantic partnership, work will be carried out according to a common plan for ensuring security, which will be developed with the broad participation of European countries and on the basis of the assistance that the United States can provide,” the leader analyzed.
However, he reaffirmed that Europe must be prepared to “take on greater responsibility for maintaining peace in Europe”, which means “increasing defence budgets”.
Meanwhile, answering the question about the possibility of deploying troops to Ukraine, Sweden stated its readiness to provide security guarantees to Kiev on the condition that "this step must be carried out with the support and security guarantees of the United States" as well as "based on the existence of reliable structures".
It is absolutely clear that Europe needs the United States to ensure its defense capabilities as well as to protect Kiev and the security of the entire continent.
However, with the fierce exchange of words between President Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky taking place on February 28 at the White House causing the Washington-Kiev relationship to almost collapse, it remains to be seen how far the US will agree to extend its protective "umbrella" in Europe.
Source: https://baoquocte.vn/xung-dot-ukraine-bi-day-den-nga-3-lich-su-chau-au-buoc-toi-thoi-khac-tu-dung-tren-doi-chan-minh-chiec-o-my-van-con-qua-lon-306213.html
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