Germany hosts Summit with France and Poland to resolve differences over Ukraine war
The Chancellor of Germany – Olaf Scholz, will host the Summit with the President of France – Emmanuel Macron and the Prime Minister of Poland – Donald Tusk, to project European unity in supporting Ukraine.
The meeting follows weeks of tension between the allies regarding the approach to assisting Ukraine amidst the ongoing conflict with Russia.
Last month, a hastily organised Summit in Paris aimed to reinvigorate Western efforts to aid Ukraine against Russian aggression. However, the summit revealed divisions, particularly when French President Emmanuel Macron declined to rule out the deployment of Western troops to Ukraine. This stance led to a reprimand from Scholz, underscoring longstanding divisions between the European Union’s leading powers.
Speaking on the occasion, the Former Foreign Minister of France, who is now a Special Envoy to Macron – Jean-Yves Le Drian said, “The time has come for calm between France and Germany. I think that this meeting will help ease tensions and strengthen support for Ukraine.”
Franco-German disagreements are nothing new. But the current level of discord has alarmed officials in Ukraine and across the continent. The two leaders are sending very different strategic messages. While Macron sounds aggressive, Scholz is seen as a “peace chancellor” who will avoid any escalation towards a war between the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) and Russia.
Separately, the Secretary General of NATO – Jens Stoltenberg, has said Ukraine is running out of ammunition in its war against Russia’s invasion and NATO members are not doing enough to help Kyiv. He also added that NATO allies have the capacity to provide more to Ukraine but need to show the political will to do so.
Taking it to X, Stoltenberg tweeted,
Good meeting with President @AndrzejDuda. I thanked him for #Poland's key contributions to #NATO & strong support for #Ukraine. Together we have the capacity to provide Ukraine with what it needs. Now all Allies need to show real political will, dig deep, and deliver quickly. pic.twitter.com/pSug4QaMGk
— Jens Stoltenberg (@jensstoltenberg) March 14, 2024
Poland’s strategic location neighbouring Ukraine has made it a vital partner in Europe’s quest to support Kyiv. Still, questions over weapons supplies and also whether Ukraine has the forces to face Russia in the long term has left some allies wavering in their support.
Recently, the European Union (E.U.) has announced to provide € 5 billion (U.S. $ 5.48 billion) military aid to Ukraine, as a part of the reformation of the European Peace Facility (EPF) fund. The United States (U.S.) has also announced another package of U.S. $ 300 million for Ukraine to help them fight the invading Russian forces. The new funding became available as a result of savings made in weapons contracts. Another U.S. $ 61 billion bill remains blocked by the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives.
