Germany and its European partners are committed to providing security guarantees to Ukraine as part of any peace deal, Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Thursday.
Ahead of a meeting in Berlin with some of her European counterparts and top EU diplomat Kaja Kallas, Baerbock said: “Here in this circle we are unanimous: Ukraine needs strong security guarantees.
“This also includes long-term military and financial support for Ukraine,” he said.
Baerbock added.
Guarantees for Kiev would send a “clear message,” the foreign minister said. “We stand up for the security and future of our European continent.”
Kallas said more must be done to support Ukraine in its defense against Russia.
“We must do more to strengthen Ukraine on the battlefield,” she said. ‘The stronger they are on the battlefield, the stronger they are behind the negotiations.
“And of course it is up to Ukraine to say when they are ready to sit at a negotiating table,” Kallas added.
Baerbock and Kallas did not answer questions about the participation of German or European soldiers in a possible peacekeeping mission in Ukraine.
Earlier in December, Baerbock refused to rule out this prospect, drawing criticism in Germany.
The situation in Syria was also expected on the agenda in Berlin, with Baerbock warning that the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime was only the first step on a long journey towards normalization.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock gives a statement on the meeting of the European Union’s foreign ministers at the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Fabian Sommer/dpa
