Trump’s shadow over EU summit
This is the last EU summit before US President-elect Trump takes office. The leaders of the 27 countries will further clarify the strategies for dealing with the war in Ukraine and the prospects for Syria. Ukrainian President Zelensky, who was invited to attend the summit, sent a clear message at the beginning: “Europe alone cannot save Ukraine!” The EU is not unaware of this, but the attitude on the other side of the Atlantic is unpredictable. Trump is suspected of sacrificing Ukraine’s interests to achieve a ceasefire. This is a critical moment. Zelensky called for unity not only within the EU, but also with the United States led by Trump, emphasizing that cooperation across the Atlantic is an indispensable condition for Ukraine to achieve lasting peace. He said: “The EU’s guarantee for Ukraine is not enough. Whether now or in the future, the real guarantee for Ukraine is NATO.” He continued: “Only when Europe and the United States are united can they really stop Putin.” Ukraine looks forward to strengthening cooperation with Trump’s United States. A rare scene occurred at the EU summit on Thursday. French President Macron did not attend the appointment. He flew to Mayotte, a French territory in the Indian Ocean, on Wednesday evening to inspect the extremely serious disaster. As usual, German Chancellor Scholz represented France. However, Macron met with Ukrainian President Zelensky before leaving, and the two sides discussed the EU sending ground troops to Ukraine to supervise the implementation of a possible ceasefire in the future. However, Zelensky said that there are still many points that need to be clarified. “We support Macron’s proposal, but we must discuss the details. For example, how many people will the European ground force consist of? And what can the European ground force do in the event of Russian provocation?” On Wednesday, European Commission President von der Leyen warned that our friends and even our enemies will closely watch how we continue to support Ukraine. There should be no lack of support for Ukraine. Zelensky met with NATO Secretary-General Rutte on Wednesday evening along with the leaders of Germany, Italy, Poland and the Netherlands. The latter said, “This is an excellent opportunity to discuss how to provide security guarantees to Ukraine.” According to the Dutch Prime Minister, the participants deliberately did not mention “peace talks.” But peace talks may be launched soon. Putin, the master of the Kremlin, also declared on Thursday that he is willing to meet with Trump at any time. Both sides want to win over Trump. Which side will Trump’s balance tilt towards? Before Trump officially takes office on January 20, Europeans want to send two clear messages: first, Ukraine cannot be absent from any decision regarding Ukraine; second, any decision regarding Europe cannot be made without European participation. Obviously, this is a signal to Trump. The American billionaire’s previous claim to bring peace to Ukraine “within 24 hours” has aroused doubts in the EU, which is worried that it will be left out by Trump, while Kiev refuses to accept a “forced peace.”
