Europe should have a containment strategy towards Russia, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský told Euractiv as his country prepares to host NATO foreign ministers on Thursday (30 May) to work on a new kind of support package for Ukraine.
The current discussions in the military alliance’s corridors focus heavily on what support package to announce for Ukraine — and six weeks from the event, the final decision remains blurry.
Looking ahead, Lipavský called for an end to ad hoc approaches, including at EU level, and a wholesome containment strategy toward Russia at NATO
“I would welcome every measure, meaning we can contain Russia. Part of the containment of Russia is also logically and definitely supporting Ukraine’s right to defend itself from Russian aggression.”
On the topic of short-term outcomes, Lipavský explained that the “main goal” of this week’s ministerial meeting is “to compare notes” on the upcoming NATO Washington Summit in July, “where the real results should be presented.”
Several components are currently being floated, including the idea of creating a €100 billion fund for military support, institutionalising the ad hoc coordination platforms, appointing a NATO representative in Kyiv, and the matter of membership and bilateral security arrangements.
The discussion is also likely to focus on Western countries lifting restrictions on the use of their Western-made weapons to target Russian territory.
“We have a variety of opinions in NATO on support to Ukraine, ” Lipavský said, adding as the host of the meeting, looking for a “common denominator”.
“The commitment of NATO countries is quite strong. The question is: will we be able to do it together?” he asked.
On creating a €100 billion fund, “we all understand that there are countries which are very sceptical”, he said.
Several military allies have publicly and privately expressed doubts about the fund during the last foreign affairs ministerial meeting in early April, especially on how to finance it.
The US, the largest military power in the alliance and highest contributor, struggled to pass a large aid bill for Ukraine. It finally managed in April and is unlikely to do so again before the November elections, after which NATO-hawkish ex-president Donald Trump could return to the White House.
On this, the Czech minister said, “Let’s see how the debate will move and where what will be the result of that,” adding, “No one knows what will be presented in Washington, but this is the moment when things are getting clearer and clearer”.
He managed expectations by adding that the result “is not only about money” but also cooperation on logistics, on the exchange of information, in connection to the country’s defence planning – “so it is a complex discussion”.
The military allies have already been tasked with examining their long-term strategy toward Moscow, but Euractiv understands nothing concrete has emerged from this.
“We are always talking little things or bigger things, but not in the complexity of stopping or containing Russia’s threat as such,” Lipavský said.
When asked about his approach and relationship with Russia, he said, “This is a very, very, very complex discussion, and definitely, we are not leading the kind of discussion on the level of the EU or NATO yet.”
He welcomed Germany’s coordination for delivering air defence systems such as US-made Patriot batteries.
With that example in mind, he called for “a strategic approach because we are now doing many ad hoc things, ad hoc solutions. But we should have this holistic approach.”
Czechs have been at the forefront of an initiative to provide Ukrainians with severely needed ammunition, with the first batches to be delivered “in June”, the minister said.
He refrained from giving more specifics on the timeline and the amounts.
Asked by Euractiv if he was concerned by Russia’s reaction to NATO’s newfound interest in stepping up lethal military aid to Ukraine, Lipavsky said, “It is not NATO that would be escalating; it’s Russia that is escalating,” adding that it is in Europe’s interest to provide security for Ukraine.
[Edited by Alexandra Brzozowski/Alice Taylor]