EU leaders meet in a two-day informal summit at the Palace of Versailles near the French capital, Paris, on Thursday to discuss the consequences of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
They are also discussing strengthening the bloc’s ties with Ukraine with a view to its possible accession.
The summit comes as more than 2 million people have fled Ukraine to neighboring EU countries to seek refuge from Russian attacks, which have often hit civilian infrastructure.
The Russian invasion is widely regarded as destroying the European security order created after World War II and the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
The Russian invasion is now in the spotlight
The Versailles Summit was originally intended to discuss the new EU economic model as the culmination of France’s six-month rotating EU presidency, but that focus has now shifted to Russia’s attack on Ukraine, which is widely regarded as as a violation of international law.
“Russia’s war of aggression is a tectonic shift in European history,” EU leaders were quoted as saying in a joint statement, adding that ” continent.
The draft statement also states that EU member states will enforce sanctions imposed on Russia over its invasion and that they are ready to take more action if necessary to maintain pressure on both Russia and Belarus.
Leaders are also discussing how to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian energy, with the EU paying millions in Russia every day for gas, oil and coal.
Ahead of the summit, French and German leaders Emanuel Macron and Olaf Solz jointly called on Russian President Vladimir Putin to call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine.
Support for Ukraine
The leaders are also discussing Ukraine’s possible membership in the bloc, after its president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, signed an application a week ago.
Following the President’s move, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba recently wrote in an article in Financial Times that the acceptance of Ukraine as a member of the EU “would offer a huge injection of hope to the Ukrainian people”.
Ukraine’s bid to join the bloc is strongly supported by other countries previously under Soviet rule, such as Poland.
However, others, such as the Netherlands and France, are likely to insist that the country go through the regular and lengthy accession process. Another obstacle to Ukraine’s accession is a collective defense clause in the EU treaty, as Russia’s presence on its borders could be a persistent threat, judging by Moscow’s current actions.
The draft statement for the meeting stated that while the application was under consideration, “pending and without delay, we will further strengthen our ties and deepen our cooperation” with Ukraine.
The Prime Minister of Latvia Krisjanis Karins, whose country borders Russia, said before the talks that it was “important to show a clear, open door to EU membership for Ukraine, that the way is open for them to take.”
Ukraine already has free trade agreements, as well as closer political and economic ties with the EU.
tj / kb (AP, Reuters)
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