The EU marked today the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 with a joint statement by the Presidents of the European institutions. The Ukrainian flag was raised at the Commission’s headquarter as a symbol of solidarity.
The statement condemns Russia’s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine and the violation of international law and UN Charter. “Two years of violence, brutality, terror and destruction. We shall never forget the initial shock of the attack, the horror of the events in Borodianka, Bucha, Mariupol.” The places became notorious for the killing of civilians and total destruction.
In spite of all the “continuing atrocities and suffering inflicted upon it across the country,” the statement is optimistic. “Ukraine is standing firm. The heroic Ukrainian people are demonstrating fortitude and determination in defending their homeland and fighting for their freedom and our shared European values.”
The EU reaffirms that it will always support Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders. “Russia and its leadership bear sole responsibility for this war and its global consequences, as well as for the serious crimes committed. We remain determined to hold them to account, including for the crime of aggression.”
“More than ever, we remain united and true to our promise to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. For the people of Ukraine, for peace and security in Europe and for the rules-based international order to prevail.”
The EU will continue its strong and unwavering political, military, financial, economic, diplomatic and humanitarian support to help Ukraine defend itself, protect its people, its cities and its critical infrastructure, restore its territorial integrity, bring back the thousands of deported children, and bring the war to an end.
The statement also recalls that the EU has decided to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and will help it on its path towards EU membership. “The future of Ukraine lies in the EU.”
Future EU membership
As previously reported, the European Commission confirmed last month that it had started the screening process regarding Ukraine’s EU application. It would also start to work on the draft negotiating framework for Ukraine and submit it to the Council in the coming weeks. It is not clear when the framework will be ready and it can take more time, according to the Commission.
The European Union will continue to provide Ukraine with regular and predictable financial support. The 50-billion-euro financial assistance package for 2024-2027 will help Ukraine meet its immediate needs, rebuild its economy and society, modernise its institutions and consolidate democracy and the rule of law.
Raising of Ukrainian Flags in front of the Berlaymont building, to commemorate the second year of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, credit: EU
The package (Ukraine Facility) was recently approved by the Special European Council on 1 February and since then the EU countries have accelerated the procedures to make it possible to start channeling funding in the beginning of March. Of the total €50 billion available, €33 billion are in loans, and €17 billion are in grants.
As regards the delivery of military aid to Ukraine, the EU is lacking behind. In the statement it promises to continue to address Ukraine's pressing military and defence needs, including deliveries of urgently needed ammunition and missiles.
Further sanctions
Russia and its leaders will pay a growing price for their actions. The EU refers to the 13th sanctions package which was announced yesterday.
It has also taken the first concrete steps towards directing extraordinary revenues stemming from Russian immobilised assets to support Ukraine. “We will continue our targeted actions to further isolate Russia in international fora.”
The EU supports Ukraine's Peace Formula for a "just, comprehensive and lasting peace based on the principles of the UN Charter and international law as well as all efforts towards a Global Peace Summit with the widest possible international support."
In a joint op-ed, Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba and EU’s High Representative Josep Borrell, who also signed the above statement, wrote that what Russia is doing is a classic example of nineteenth-century-style imperial and colonial aggression.
“Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly claimed that Ukraine does not exist as a nation and that Ukrainian identity is artificial,” they wrote.
“The war is solely about annihilating an independent country, conquering land, and re-establishing dominance over a people that decided to be masters of their own destiny. Russia’s imperial ambition is doubtless familiar to many nations around the world that were previously subject to colonial rule and oppression.”
A combined total of some 500,000 soldiers have been killed or wounded from both sides so far according to US intelligence, but the exact numbers are hard to verify. Image from Mariupol 2022. Credit: Belga
“Ultimately, this war is not about ‘the West against the rest’", they write referring to the global South where many countries have refused to condemning Russia's war of aggression and even are supplying weapons to Russia. "Supporting Ukraine is not ‘pro-Western’. It is about rejecting war and terror. It is about standing for the principle of international relations based on mutual respect, and supporting Ukrainians’ right to security and liberty.”
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On the peace-formula, they write that Ukraine has proposed a ten-point peace formula – which the EU fully supports – that not only envisions the end of hostilities but also includes proposals to strengthen food security, nuclear safety, environmental protection, energy security, international justice, human rights, and respect for the UN Charter.
“This formula is the only serious peace proposal on the table, and we are calling on all countries committed to peace to join us in putting it into action. Ukraine is currently organizing a Global Peace Summit in Switzerland, and the EU is actively supporting this process.”
Russia will then be presented with this consolidated position representing the global majority, leaving it no other choice but to engage in good faith.”
“Our common goal is to ensure that Ukraine can turn the tide of the war in its favour so that a just peace can be reached as soon as possible.”
It does not necessarily mean that Ukraine must liberate the territories occupied and annexed by Russia but that it can defend itself against Russia and inflict such losses on it that it will be forced to negotiate.
“There must not be a return to the dark past of military aggression, imperialism, and colonialism – neither in Europe nor in any other region,” Borrell and Kuleba plead in their joint op-ed.
The Brussels Times
