The leaders of the European Union begin this Monday in Brussels an extraordinary two-day summit, in which they will discuss issues of energy, food security and defense, in all cases in light of the war in Ukraine, again the central issue.
This European Council will once again have the participation, by videoconference, of the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, who last week deplored the “lack of unity” among the 27, at a time when the member states have not yet reached an agreement about the sixth package of sanctions against Russia, almost a month after it was presented by the European Commission, in the face of Hungary’s blocking of the embargo, albeit gradual and progressive, on Russian oil imports.
Zelensky denounces lack of unity among Western countries
In the letter of invitation addressed to the leaders of the 27, including Prime Minister António Costa, Charles Michel begins precisely by stressing the need for the EU to remain united in its response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“From day one, we have been unwavering in our humanitarian, financial, military and political support for the Ukrainian people and their leadership. We will continue to pressure Russia. Our unity has always been our strongest asset and remains our guiding principle,” he reads.
Charles Michel then indicates that the first working session of the summit, scheduled to begin this Monday at 4:00 p.m. local time (3:00 p.m. in Lisbon), will be entirely dedicated to Ukraine, with Zelensky intervening by videoconference right at the beginning of the discussion.
One of our most pressing concerns is helping the Ukrainian state, together with our international partners, with its liquidity needs. We will also discuss how best to organize our support for the reconstruction of Ukraine, as it will take a major global effort to rebuild the country.”
The Belgian official then indicates that the European Council will return “to the issue of energyincluding high prices, which are hitting households and businesses hard” in the EU.
“We must accelerate our energy transition if we want to eliminate our dependence on Russian fossil fuels as quickly as possible. Based on our decisions made at Versailles, we will discuss the best ways to move the work forward,” he says.
Portugal and Spain should take advantage of this debate to once again insist on the role that the Iberian Peninsula can play in the energy autonomy of the EU, reinforcing the need to develop interconnections with the rest of Europe, an issue that was discussed again between António Costa and the Head of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, at a meeting held on Thursday night in Madrid.
Costa and Sánchez prepare extraordinary European summit and underline the importance of energy interconnections
In addition to Energy, the leaders will address the issue of world food security, which is increasingly present on the agenda, pointing out Charles Michel in the letter of invitation addressed to the capitals that “Russian military aggression threatens to have a dramatic effect on food security world food”, which needs to be answered.
“Food prices have skyrocketed and we are facing serious risks of famine and destabilization In many parts of the world. At our meeting, we will discuss concrete ways to help Ukraine export its agricultural products using the EU infrastructure”, says the President of the European Council.
Also within the framework of this debate, and given the particular vulnerability of African countries, the 27 will have the opportunity to exchange views with the president of the African Union, Macky Sall, who will also join the debate by videoconference.
Finally, the European Council will once again debate the reinforcement of European Defense, discussing on the 27th the study commissioned in March from the European Commission on the gaps in the EU’s defense investment, and presented by the community executive on the 18th of May.
“Our most urgent priority is to coordinate the efforts of Member States to reconstitute the stocks and build a European industrial base. We will discuss how to approach these two issues”, says Charles Michel.
Source: Observadora
