Defence, Ukraine remains priority for EU. But Hungary blocks aid

Brussels – The EU rallies around Ukraine, at least in words. The defence chiefs of the member states have reiterated their support for Kyiv, with the usual exception of Hungary. To the frustration of the High Representative, Kaja Kallas, and the other 26 chancelleries, Budapest continues to block the disbursement of aid to the aggrieved country, while the diplomatic initiatives of recent weeks appear to have reached a dead end. 

Three main topics were on the table for the Defence Ministers of the Twenty-Seven, who met today (29 August) in Copenhagen for an informal Council meeting. In the foreground was Ukraine. “Russia responds to peace efforts with missiles,” Kaja Kallas began with yet another jibe at Moscow, appearing at the press conference at the end of the meeting alongside the host, Danish Troels Lund Poulsen. 

The stalemate in the talks on ending the war, says the High Representative, is solely due to the Kremlin’s tenant: Volodymyr Zelensky wants peace, Vladimir Putin does not. While the informal meeting in Denmark was taking place, the Ukrainian president issued a new ultimatum to his Russian counterpart, giving him until Monday (1 September) to accept Donald Trump‘s offer of bilateral talks between the leaders of the warring countries. 

The head of EU diplomacy has returned to the air attack on Kyiv launched by the Federation in the early hours of yesterday, in which the seat of the EU delegation was also hit. The attack was strongly condemned by member states, but not all. As usual, the naysayer is Viktor Orbán‘s Hungary, distancing itself from the statement  with which the other 26 chancelleries (plus the UK) deplored the night raid.

What annoys Kallas the most, however, is not this latest diplomatic discourtesy of Budapest, but rather the fact that the Hungarian prime minister is continuing to hold hostage some €6.6 billion in the European Peace Facility (EPF), which serves to reimburse the Twenty-Seven when they supply arms to Kyiv. 

“Aid to Ukraine saves lives,” she remarked, pointing out that “the continuous blocking of the EPF is not justified” and recalling that various options have been offered to the Hungarian government. The EPF could also support NATO’s PURL Initiative, which finances US-made arms purchases for Ukraine in the context of the overall rebalancing of burdens between Uncle Sam and other alliance members, as agreed at the Hague Summit last June. 

On the ministers’ plate today was also the burning issue of security guarantees, which the members of the coalition of the willing are
trying to define in operational detail. The only thing that is certain at this point is that Washington will not send soldiers to the field but will limit itself to providing support of another kind (intelligence and air cover, for example), while the Europeans will “have to take the lion’s share.” 

Among the guarantees that Europe can offer, the former Estonian Prime Minister argued, are military missions such as EUMAM, through which over 80,000 Ukrainian soldiers have already been trained in 24 member states. Kallas welcomed the “broad support expressed today for expanding the mandate” of the mission, suggesting that once the war is over “we should be ready to do more”, including sending EU instructors to Kyiv academies.

At the same time, she notes, synergies with the Ukrainian defence industry must be increased: by investing more in the country and opening up Ukrainian production lines on EU territory. That is, emphasises Poulsen, what Copenhagen is doing with its “Danish model 2.0“. While Denmark initially invested directly in Ukraine (model 1.0), “hopefully in a few weeks we will invite the first Ukrainian defence company to start production here,” the minister announced. 

Another part of the discussion focused on the nine priority areas of military production identified by leaders at the June European Council, including aeronautics, air defence, missiles, drones and munitions. The key issue, the High Representative explains, is “filling the most urgent capability gaps” and doing so in a coordinated manner: otherwise, she warns, the record spending of chancelleries on rearmament will be in vain. And she reminds the Commission of its commitment to present the roadmap for the Readiness 2030 strategy in October. 

Finally, the defence chiefs addressed the issue of European missions around the world. From the Western Balkans to the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean, Kallas says, these operations are vital for global security. Starting tonight, it will be the turn of the Foreign Ministers, who will also have to deal with other hot dossiers, including the use of frozen Russian assets, the restoration of sanctions against Iran and the bloody escalation of the Middle East crisis.