European Union leaders joined a video conference on Wednesday morning to hear directly from Emmanuel Macron about his recent meeting with Donald Trump in Washington, where the two presidents pledged to bring peace to Ukraine but disagreed on the best way forward.
Trump doubled down on his goal of ending the war with Russia "within weeks", while Macron warned against rushing into a truce that the Kremlin could use to its advantage.
"In the past, we had a ceasefire that was not respected," Macron said, referring to the Minsk agreements that did not end the war in Donbas.
Sitting together in the Oval Office, Macron was forced to check the facts with Trump after the American said Ukraine would repay the aid provided by the EU.
"We provided real money, to be clear." Macron said.
Wednesday's videoconference was called by the President of the European Council António Costa in anticipation of the extraordinary summit on 6 March. The call lasted about 30 minutes and was attended by all 27 leaders, the spokesman said.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, was also present.
"Very useful (meeting) in preparation for our extraordinary European Council on 6 March, where we will take a decision on our support for Ukraine and the strengthening of European defence." Costa wrote on his social network.
One of the participants, the President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda, he said: "To achieve peace through strength, we must act together."
The bloc is currently working on a new joint fund that will provide Ukraine with lethal and non-lethal assistance in the short term, such as artillery, air defence systems and training equipment. The exact value of the fund is expected to be agreed on 6 March.
The aim is to put Ukraine in as strong a position as possible ahead of any negotiations with Russia and to show the US is prepared to take a larger share of military and financial aid to Kiev, a key White House demand.
The latest figures from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy confirm that joint European aid (€132 billion) has long outstripped US aid (€114 billion), refuting Trump's oft-repeated claim that America has contributed $350 billion (€333 billion).
However, Hungary's Trump-friendly stance may thwart the unanimity needed to approve the common fund. Costa traveled to Budapest on Tuesday to meet with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, whose government has asked Brussels to refrain from taking initiatives that could disrupt U.S.-Russia negotiations. In parallel with the fund, the European Commission is preparing a new proposal to drastically increase defence spending in all EU countries - another demand from Washington. Von der Leyen said the "comprehensive plan" would include an element of common EU money, though not necessarily common debt.
It is scheduled to be presented at the summit on 6 March.
"Europe faces important security choices and it is increasingly clear that it must be able to defend its strategic interests effectively. We agree that ensuring our own security is one of our top priorities and that it is essential that Europe acts with unity and determination in this area," said the Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala.
Wednesday's video call took place amid a flurry of diplomatic activity sparked by Trump's surprise February 12 phone call with Vladimir Putin, which took place without prior coordination with Western allies.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk shared a cryptic message with his counterparts after a video call: "Uncertainty, unpredictability, agreements. Are these really the rules on which a new international order should be based?"
euronews/ gnews.cz - RoZ
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