EU Leaders Hold Emergency Summit On Defense And Ukraine Aid As U.S. Pulls Back | rssama.com

BRUSSELS (AP) — Facing nan imaginable that nan United States might trim them adrift nether President Donald Trump, European Union leaders launched a time of emergency talks Thursday successful a bid to beef up their ain information and guarantee that Ukraine will still beryllium decently protected.

Friedrich Merz, nan apt adjacent chancellor of Germany, and acme president Antonio Costa discussed complete meal successful Brussels ways to fortify Europe’s defenses connected a short deadline. Merz pushed plans this week to loosen nan nation’s rules connected moving up indebtedness to let for higher defense spending.

Meanwhile, nan 27-nation bloc was waking up to news that French President Emmanuel Macron would confer pinch EU leaders astir nan anticipation of using France’s atomic deterrent to protect nan continent from Russian threats.

It each underscored nan oversea alteration that has taken spot successful nan 2 months since Trump took agency and instantly started upending the cornerstones of cooperation betwixt nan United States and Europe that had been nan bedrock of Western information since World War II.

“Spend, spend, walk connected defense and deterrence. That’s. nan astir important message,” said Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen.

The telephone is simply a crisp departure from decades of diminution successful subject spending successful Europe, wherever defense often came past successful galore budgetary considerations.

The bloc will “take decisive steps forward,” Macron told nan French federation Wednesday evening. “Member states will beryllium capable to summation their subject spending” and “massive associated backing will beryllium provided to bargain and nutrient immoderate of nan astir innovative munitions, tanks, weapons and instrumentality successful Europe,” he said.

Adding to nan ebullient message, he said that “Europe’s early does not person to beryllium decided successful Washington aliases Moscow.”

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was attending nan summit, received lukewarm bonhomie from astir leaders — a stark opposition pinch nan verbal lashing nan Ukraine president sewage from Trump little than a week ago.

“I want to convey each our European leaders,” Zelenskyy said. “Strong support from nan very opening of nan war. During each this period, and past week, you stayed pinch us.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, right, and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speak pinch nan media arsenic they get for an EU Summit astatine nan European Council building successful Brussels connected March 6, 2025.

Omar Havana via Associated Press

Helping EU members summation spending

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has projected a plan to loosen fund rules truthful countries that are consenting tin walk overmuch much connected defense. Her connection is underpinned by 150 cardinal euros ($162 billion) worthy of loans to bargain privilege subject equipment.

Most of nan accrued defense spending would person to travel from nationalist budgets astatine a clip erstwhile galore countries are already overburdened pinch debt.

Part of von der Leyen’s scheme includes measures to guarantee struggling personnel states won’t beryllium punished for going excessively heavy successful nan reddish if nan spending is earmarked for defense.

“Europe faces a clear and coming danger, and truthful Europe has to beryllium capable to protect itself, to take sides itself,” she said.

France is struggling to trim an excessive yearly fund shortage of 5% of GDP, aft moving up its full indebtedness load to 112% of GDP pinch spending connected alleviation for businesses and consumers during nan COVID-19 pandemic and nan power situation that followed Russia’s penetration of Ukraine.

Five different countries utilizing nan euro rate person indebtedness levels complete 100% of GDP: Belgium, Greece, Spain, Italy and Portugal.

Europe’s largest economy, Germany, has much room to borrow, pinch a indebtedness level of 62% of GDP.

Pressing information needs

Part of immoderate information scheme is besides to protect nan progressively beleaguered position of Ukraine.

A Russian rocket killed 4 group staying astatine a edifice successful Zelenskyy’s hometown overnight. He said that a humanitarian organization’s volunteers had moved into nan edifice successful Kryvyi Rih, successful cardinal Ukraine, conscionable earlier nan strike. The volunteers included Ukrainian, American and British nationals, but it wasn’t clear whether those group were among nan 31 injured.

Early this week, Trump ordered a pause to U.S. subject supplies to Ukraine arsenic he sought to property Zelenskyy to prosecute successful negotiations to extremity nan warfare pinch Russia, bringing caller urgency to Thursday’s summit.

Thursday’s gathering is improbable to reside Ukraine’s astir pressing needs. It is not aimed astatine urgently drumming up much arms and ammunition to capable immoderate proviso vacuum created by nan U.S. freeze. Nor will each nations work together to unblock nan estimated 183 cardinal euros ($196 billion) successful stiff Russian assets held successful a Belgian clearing house, a cookware of fresh rate that could beryllium seized.

Activists unfurl a ample banner successful support of Ukraine extracurricular nan European Council building up of an EU acme successful Brussels, Belgium, connected March 5, 2025.

Omar Havana via Associated Press

Still, nan Europeans underlined nan value of nan moment.

“This is simply a watershed infinitesimal for Europe and Ukraine arsenic portion of our European family. It’s besides a watershed infinitesimal for Ukraine,” von der Leyen said, arsenic she stood alongside Zekenskyy earlier striding together into nan summit.

But possibly nan biggest situation for nan EU will beryllium taking a agreed stance astatine a infinitesimal erstwhile it’s fractured, since overmuch of nan bloc’s actions requires unanimous support. Hungary is threatening to veto portion of nan acme connection connected Ukraine, arsenic is Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico.

“We person to return decisions nary matter nan 1 aliases 2 which are opposing each time,” said Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda. “Otherwise history will penalize america and we will salary a very precocious cost.”

Thursday’s acme is improbable to nutrient contiguous decisions connected spending for Ukraine aliases its ain defenses. Another EU acme wherever nan existent contours of decisions would beryllium overmuch clearer is group for March 20-21.

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AP journalists Sylvie Corbet successful Brussels, David McHugh successful Frankfurt, Barry Hatton successful Lisbon and Illia Novikov successful Kyiv contributed to this report.