<h6><strong>Ane Barcos</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Defense Policy, Kaja Kallas, has called for an extraordinary informal meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council this Wednesday, November 26, to discuss the potential peace plan for Ukraine promoted at the suggestion of US President Donald Trump.</strong></h4> The meeting, which will be held by videoconference, aims to coordinate the European Union's position in light of "the latest developments in the context of a new positive impetus in efforts to achieve peace in Ukraine," as explained by the Council. The meeting will be attended by the foreign ministers of the EU member states, along with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andriy Sybiha. This meeting follows negotiations held in Geneva last Sunday, where proposals to revive a possible peace process in Ukraine were assessed. Representatives from the United States, Ukraine, and EU institutions attended those negotiations. Also, on the sidelines of the European Union-African Union Summit in Luanda, European Council President António Costa convened an informal meeting of EU leaders on Monday to address the same issue. Costa stressed that “peace cannot be just a temporary truce, but a lasting solution” and emphasized that “Ukraine has chosen Europe, and Europe will stand with Ukraine.” Furthermore, the Council President insisted on the need for the European Union to play an active role in any peace plan, noting that issues of great importance to the EU, such as sanctions, enlargement, and frozen assets, require “the full involvement and decisiveness of the EU.” <h5><strong>Albares and Borrell</strong></h5> Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares, who will participate in the meeting convened by Kallas, spoke this past Monday with Andrii Sybiha about the process underway in Geneva. “Spain supports the Ukrainian people and President Zelensky,” Albares told Sybiha, as he himself wrote on social media. “We want a just and lasting peace. European security and EU and NATO decisions are priorities for Europeans,” he added. “I spoke to José Manuel Albares to discuss the outcomes of the recent negotiations in Geneva and next steps in our peace efforts,” the Ukrainian minister wrote. “I emphasised the importance of further increasing pressure on the aggressor, including sanctions and enabling the full use of frozen Russian assets—we need this decision as soon as posible,” he explained. “I also thanked my colleague for the recent successful visit (to Spain) of President Zelenskyy and Spain’s consistent support for Ukraine,” he concluded. For his part, the former EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and former Spanish Foreign Minister, Josep Borrell, warned via social media that “Trump’s plan to end the war in Ukraine exposes the failure of the EU’s appeasement strategy.” “Giving in to his demands on military spending, tariffs, digital deregulation, multinational taxation, and energy supplies has achieved nothing,” he lamented. “With the 28-point plan to end the war in Ukraine, Trump’s United States can no longer be considered an ally of Europe, which is not even consulted on matters affecting its own security. Europe must acknowledge this shift in U.S. policy and respond accordingly,” he concluded.
