“Today I was in Paris, where we just had the meeting of the Coalition of the Willing.”
“We discussed security guarantees for Ukraine.”
“It was a crucial meeting, because we all know that what is at stake is the future and security of our entire continent.”
“So today there was resolve but also concrete delivery.”
“The leaders endorsed the work of their chiefs of defence and defence ministers.”
“We will be relentless in our efforts to keep Ukraine strong, Europe safe and achieve peace.”
“The first and strongest line of security guarantees are strong Ukrainian armed forces with no restrictions.”
“We must turn Ukraine into a steel porcupine, indigestible for present and future aggressors.”
“That means standing armed forces that are strong, well-equipped, and modern.”
“Our defence industries are accelerating cooperation to make this happen.”
“Europe will continue to train Ukrainian soldiers.”
“Almost 90,000 have already been trained, and we have committed to do more.”
“The second layer of the security guarantee are reassurance forces including a US support. Today, 26 countries committed to such a reassurance force, in the context of a ceasefire or a peace agreement. 26 countries willing to deploy force on the ground, in the air or at sea. This should help secure lasting peace and deter future aggression.”
“The third security guarantee is a strong and credible European defence posture. We need a surge in defence investment. Therefore it is good news that SAFE, our 150 billion euro defence fund is fully subscribed with 19 member states participating. Most of them will not only invest in their own defence industrial bases but also in Ukraine’s. This creates jobs in Europe.”
“Our long-term structural answer to our defence investment is our new European budget. We have our eyes set on 2030. That is our readiness horizon.”
“My final point is on putting an end to the bloodshed. Our sanctions are strong incentives for Russia to leave the battlefield and come to the negotiating table. We want peace for Ukraine.”
