EU leaders fail for a second meeting to unanimously agree on support for Ukraine

European leaders did not go beyond the support of 26 states to reaffirm their ‘continued and unwavering’ support for Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity within internationally recognized borders. The chapter in the European Council’s non-binding final text was adopted for the second consecutive time at a high-level EU meeting without the participation of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. He strongly criticized a declaration that he said was not conducive to peace. The European Council welcomed developments at the Jeddah meeting, where Ukraine accepted the US proposal for a 30-day ceasefire.

The European Union remains ready to increase pressure on Russia, including through additional sanctions and better enforcement of existing measures,’ the text says. The leaders call for a ‘comprehensive peace agreement that respects Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity’ and for ‘solid and credible security guarantees for Ukraine to deter future Russian aggression.’
On the sidelines of the meeting, journalists were told by the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Common Security, Kaja Kallas, that she is working on a €5 billion plan to cover Kyiv’s munitions needs. That is a ‘more realistic’ plan than the initially proposed €20 billion plan, based on contributions based on the GDP of each EU state. The original idea was for states to guarantee support with a share calculated based on their GDP. All the instruments included in the defense plan announced by the President of the European Commission a fortnight ago allow states to increase their commitment to support Ukraine,’ stressed the President of the European Council, Antonio Costa, at a press conference, partly refuting interpretations about the failure of Kallas’ proposal.

Today’s European Council focused on competitiveness,’ Costa continued, deflecting questions from journalists. He said the heads of state and government agreed ‘to give priority to simplifying and reducing regulatory and administrative burdens, lowering energy prices and mobilizing private savings to unlock the investment needed in the EU economy.’

The debate focused on three cross-cutting issues. On the regulatory simplification pillar, which is to be achieved “without compromising the predictability, policy objectives, high standards, and integrity of the internal market,” the Commission is invited, together with the co-legislators, “to work towards the objective of reducing the cost of all administrative burdens by at least 25% and by at least 35% for small and medium-sized enterprises”. The energy pillar’s objective is “to achieve a real energy union before 2030”. According to the conclusions “will require ambitious electrification using all net-zero emission solutions,” Commission President Ursula von der Leyen referred at the press conference, citing “nuclear and renewables.”

On the creation of a Capital Markets Union, the Commission is invited to “make proposals to improve the private equity and venture capital ecosystem and, in line with its respective competences under the Treaties, to propose an optional 28th Company Law Directive to allow innovative companies to expand, in time for the co-legislators to take decisive steps by 2026”.
The 27 backed the White Paper on the Future of Defence presented on Wednesday, March 19. The call focuses on “accelerating work in all areas to decisively improve Europe’s defense capability over the next five years.”

The discussion with Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank, resulted in a joint statement in which the 27 underlined “the sense of urgency and shared responsibility to make rapid and decisive progress on the savings and investment union.” The text stresses that “accelerating progress towards the digital euro is crucial to maintaining a competitive and resilient European payment system, contributing to Europe’s economic security and strengthening the international role of the euro.”
The lunch with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was followed by the adoption of a chapter in which the European Council “reaffirms the Union’s firm commitment to effective multilateralism and to the rules-based international order, with the United Nations at its center.” In the text, leaders pledge that the EU will “remain a predictable, reliable and credible partner.”
According to sources, the 27 also discussed ways for the EU to engage more internationally and build a network of partners that reflects today’s multipolar world.