Measures against Russia’s aggressive behaviour, enlargement of the European Union as well as illegal migration were discussed by political leaders at the 7th meeting of European Political Community (EPC) in Copenhagen on Thursday, 2 October. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged Europe to show ’political will’ to cut ties with Russia.
Danish PM Metter Frederiksen who hosted the EPC meeting said the talks confirmed ’unwavering support’ for Ukraine in the face of increased provocations from Moscow towards Europe. “It is clear to everybody that Russia is a threat, not only to Ukraine, but to all of Europe,” Ms Frederiksen noted. Danish PM also reaffirmed that the task ahead the EU and its partners is “to make Europe so strong that a war against us is no longer an option.”
Part of deterring Russia will be a so-called drone wall on the eastern border of the EU. According to the Ukrainian President Zelenskyy his country should play a key role and be the ’driving force’ of this project, based on its first-hand war experience of the last few years.
EU membership the only future for Ukraine
Ms Frederiksen rejected Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán’s idea that the EU should only enter into a ’strategic partnership’ with Ukraine instead of granting it future membership. “I will not allow one country, and I will certainly not allow Viktor Orbán to take decisions about the entire European future.” Ms Frederiksen said resolutely during the press conference after the EPC summit.
I will not allow one country to take decisions about the entire European future. — Mette Frederiksen, Danish Prime Minister
“The enlargement of the EU is part of our strategy, and we should stick to it,” added Ms Frederiksen, who hosted the meeting. Council President António Costa is reportedly seeking support among member states to break the current deadlock over the potential EU membership of Ukraine and Moldova. Current rules require that each stage of the accession process be supported unanimously by all 27 EU countries. Costa is trying to push through the possibility of approval by a qualified majority of states, thus circumventing the current veto of Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán.
Stricter measures against irregular migration
Seventeen European countries announced at the EPC summit a new plan to jointly enforce measures against migrant smugglers, strengthen border protection, and tighten asylum legislation. Representatives from Andorra, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, and the United Kingdom agreed on the statement.
The countries want to take decisive measures against smugglers and to secure their borders. “It is necessary to ensure that the relevant authorities have the powers, data, and capacities,” the document states. The states want to seek new ways to effectively combat smuggling gangs. They also plan to take a clear stance on return policy, using all available diplomatic and visa leverage.
Community of forty-four countries
The European Political Community is an intergovernmental forum for political and strategic discussions about the future of Europe. It was established in 2022 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The group first met in October 2022 in Prague. In addition to the EU member states, EPC also includes Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iceland, Norway, Turkey, United Kingdom and other nation states.
Regularly, two summits of EPC are held every year. The spring summit is hosted by a non-EU member state and the autumn summit hosted by an EU member state. The autumn summit is held in the country assuming the EU Presidency during that semester.
