Valerii Zaluzhnyi warned that Nato could cease to exist and Russia will set its sights on Europe next, as Ukraine’s president Zelensky prepares to join EU leaders for a summit
Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK has accused Donald Trump of “destroying the world order”.
In a speech at Chatham House in London, Valerii Zaluzhnyi also warned that Nato could cease to exist and Russia will come for Europe next. Zaluzhnyi has been tipped to be a future replacement for President Zelensky and is a former commander in chief of the Ukrainian armed forces.
“It is not just the axis of evil trying to revise the world order … The US is destroying the world order,” he said. “It is obvious the White House has questioned the unity of the whole western world,” he added. “And now Washington is trying to delegate the security issues to Europe without the participation of the US.”
European Union leaders have opened a day of emergency summit talks on Thursday to beef up their own military defences and make sure Ukraine will still be properly protected by its allies. Friedrich Merz, the likely next chancellor of Germany, was conferring with summit host Antonio Costa over breakfast on how to meet the challenge on a short deadline only days after he and his prospective coalition partner pushed plans to loosen the nation’s rules on running up debt to allow for higher defence spending.
At the same time, the 27-nation bloc was waking up to the news from French President Emmanuel Macron would confer with EU leaders the possibility of using France’s nuclear deterrent to protect the continent from Russian threats.
It all underscored the sea change that has happened in the two months since Mr Trump took office and immediately started questioning the cornerstones of co-operation between the United States and Europe which had been the bedrock of Western security since the Second World War. “Given these profound shifts in US policy, and the existential threat of another war on the continent, Europe must manage its essential defence tasks,” the European Policy Centre think tank said in a commentary.
The bloc of 27 will “take decisive steps forward,” Mr Macron told the French nation on Wednesday evening. “Member states will be able to increase their military spending” and “massive joint funding will be provided to buy and produce some of the most innovative munitions, tanks, weapons and equipment in Europe”. He added how “Europe’s future does not have to be decided in Washington or Moscow”.
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