European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke ahead of the informal meeting of European Union Heads of State or Government in Copenhagen, emphasizing the importance of unity and urgency as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues.
“We live in troubled times. The Russian war against Ukraine is still ongoing. We see that Russia is testing our resolve. So these are times where it is absolutely paramount that we have this common sense of urgency and unity to address these challenges. And therefore, this informal European Council in Copenhagen comes just at the right time. We are going to discuss two topics. One is defence, and the other one is Ukraine,” said von der Leyen.
She explained that the European Commission has prepared a scoping paper on defense, which includes initiatives such as a “drone wall.” Regarding support for Ukraine, von der Leyen stated: “If we all agree that Ukraine is our first line of defence, we have to step up the military support for Ukraine. This is the reason why we are disbursing EUR 4 billion for Ukraine today. EUR 2 billion of that will be invested in drones.”
Von der Leyen also addressed measures aimed at increasing pressure on Russia: “And we have to increase the pressure on Russia. And this is why I have proposed reparation loans for Ukraine on the basis of the immobilised Russian assets. We are not confiscating the assets, but we are taking the cash balances to provide loans for Ukraine. Ukraine has to pay back this loan if Russia pays reparations because the perpetrator has to be held accountable.”
The meeting in Copenhagen will focus on defense strategies and continued support for Ukraine amid ongoing tensions with Russia.
