Skip to content
Edit post

Zelensky meets Macron, Scholz on sidelines of Eastern Partnership summit in Brussels

by Alexander Query December 15, 2021 11:56 PM 2 min read
President Volodymyr Zelensky (R) meets with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on the sidelines of the European Union's Eastern Partnership summit, on Dec. 15, 2021 in Brussels. (Ukrainian President's Press Service)
This audio is created with AI assistance

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.

Become a member Support us just once

President Volodymyr Zelensky held meetings with the leaders of France and Germany to gather support for Ukraine on Dec. 15 in Brussels, on the sidelines of the European Union’s Eastern Partnership summit.

The Eastern Partnership is a joint initiative organized by the EU and dedicated to the development of the bloc’s relations with Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia and Moldova.

Zelensky took advantage of the event to meet with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, as Ukraine faces the threat of a full-fledged invasion by Russia.

“During the meeting with Emmanuel Macron and Olaf Scholz, (I) thanked (them) for their strong support for Ukraine against the background of the military threat of Russia, as well as for the consistent position of Germany and France in the Normandy Format. Confirmed willingness to continue our work,” Zelensky wrote on Twitter.

​​The leaders of the Normandy Format countries – Ukraine, France, Germany, and Russia – have not met since December 2019.

The group is one of two formats (the other being the largely defunct Trilateral Contact Group) set up to find a resolution to Russia’s war in eastern Ukraine. Lately, Russia has been stalling the meetings.

According to numerous reports from Ukrainian and foreign intelligence, Russia has massed between 94,000 and 100,000 combat-ready troops close to the Ukrainian border and in occupied areas.

Russia raised the stakes on Dec. 1. President Vladimir Putin demanded NATO guarantee that it wouldn’t expand to include Ukraine while launching military exercises with 10,000 troops in the country’s Southern Military District, which is adjacent to Ukraine, as well as in Russian-occupied Crimea.

Before the summit, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the EU can adopt “unprecedented measures with serious consequences for Russia.″

The nature of the potential new sanctions has not been specified so far. Media reports indicated that they may include targeted financial penalties or the shutdown of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Germany, which has been built but not yet certified.

However, Bloomberg cited anonymous senior diplomats who said that several larger Western European countries are reluctant to threaten harsh sanctions against Russia.

According to the Dec. 15 article, Germany, France, Italy and Spain want to focus on dialogue with Moscow before creating a list of punishments. Germany reportedly fears that any plans will be leaked, costing leverage against Putin, who will be given the provocation he’s seeking. The countries are also reportedly worried about economic ties with Russia.

The diplomats cited in the article also said that this approach was opposed by several unnamed European countries who want to create a strong deterrent to Russian violence.

Support independent journalism in Ukraine. Join us in this fight.
Freedom can be costly. Both Ukraine and its journalists are paying a high price for their independence. Support independent journalism in its darkest hour. Support us for as little as $1, and it only takes a minute.
visa masterCard americanExpress

News Feed

Ukraine Daily
News from Ukraine in your inbox
Ukraine news
Please, enter correct email address
12:06 AM

Media: Rosatom's top manager arrested over suspicion of bribery.

The Basmanny court in Moscow arrested on March 28 Gennadiy Sakharov, Russian state nuclear energy company Rosatom's construction project director, due to the accusations of receiving a bribe in "a particularly large amount," Russian media outlet Kommersant reported.
8:30 PM

Shmyhal, Duda meet in Warsaw.

Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal met with Polish President Andrzej Duda on March 28, as part of his official visit to Warsaw.
7:38 PM

Zelensky, Speaker Johnson hold call.

President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson held a phone call on March 28, Zelensky announced on social media.
MORE NEWS

Editors' Picks

Enter your email to subscribe
Please, enter correct email address
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required
* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Subscribe
* indicates required

Subscribe

* indicates required
Successfuly subscribed
Thank you for signing up for this newsletter. We’ve sent you a confirmation email.