PARIS – The president who arrived in Paris directly from Namibia Sauli Niinistö received a warm welcome from the host of the Ukraine meeting, the President of France From Emmanuel Macron.
The presidents who waved their hands at the cameras have met often in recent years, but for Niinistö the meeting was probably the last of his presidency.
At the end of the long drawn-out meeting, a tired-looking Niinistö said that the will of the participants was the same as in 2022, when after the Russian attack, Europe closed ranks I’m fast.
– The clear line was that now we will step up actions, especially arms aid, Niinistö stated.
Weapon aid means in particular more ammunition and anti-aircraft equipment. Ammunition – whose production and delivery to Ukraine from Europe falls short of promises – can soon also be bought from outside Europe for Ukraine.
Also the prime minister Petr Fiala the proposal received the support of 15 countries, and according to Fiala, is a very strong message addressed to Russia.
Prime Minister of the Netherlands Mark Rutte already promised “more than 100 million euros†for ammunition purchases and hoped that other countries would follow suit. According to Rutte, the countries from which purchases can be made are a secret, but India has been mentioned in this connection.
Antonio Costathe Prime Minister of Portugal, assured that the defense ministers of the European Union will present within ten days a concrete plan on how to support the Ukrainians with ammunition procurement.
Long-range missiles?
President Macron, on the other hand, promised a plan for the delivery of medium- and long-range missiles and ammunition to Ukraine within ten days.
– We have to create an alliance that can help Ukraine carry out attacks further from its border. We find out how many weapons are available in European and non-European countries.
Of particular interest are the German Taurus missiles, which have a range of 500 kilometers. Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz however stated once again that Germany will not hand them over.
– Finland will continue to arm Ukraine as well, President Niinistö promised.
Finland has already given 22 aid packages, and according to Niinistö, Finland is right at the top of aid donors.
– In addition, we have managed to deliver everything that has been decided.
This was clearly equivalent to the President of Ukraine to Volodymyr Zelensky to the estimate presented earlier on Monday, according to which only about 30% of the aid promised by the European Union has been delivered.
NATO troops in Ukraine?
Perhaps the most controversial issue discussed by the participants was the Western ground troops sent to Ukraine.
The host country, France, has reservations about the matter, but Macron does not rule out this possibility. However, the position of many countries is that the matter is not relevant now.
– Many who now say “never” are the same who two years ago said “never tanks, airplanes or long-range missiles”. Anything is possible if it helps us achieve our goals.
In the opening speech of the conference, Macron also told why he invited the allies to Paris: Russia has become stricter recently. It has progressed on the Ukrainian war front, but the situation inside the country has also tightened, which to Alexei Navalny murder is a clear sign.
In recent months, Russia has also increased its information influence and harassment on the Internet, with the clear aim of influencing the internal politics of Western countries and especially the EU elections.