The need to respond to the radical change in the foreign policy of US President Donald Trump's administration has brought together European Union leaders for a special meeting of the European Council, where they will consider two issues: strengthening support for Ukraine and Europe's defence capabilities.

On the eve of the meeting, which will be held on Thursday in Brussels, European Council President Antonio Costa said that the meeting will be about turning the principles of the European Union into real actions to guarantee peace and security for Ukraine and Europe. "It's time to turn our principles into real action. We can only guarantee peace and security, in Ukraine and in Europe, by being strong and that’s why the EU is making its largest defence effort ever. That is what tomorrow's Special EUCO is all about," Costa wrote.

EU leaders are meeting at a time when the actions of US President Donald Trump’s administration have fundamentally diverged from the core principles of EU foreign policy on the issue of Russian aggression against Ukraine and future peace talks.

CHRONOLOGY OF THE CRISIS

Just over a month ago, on 20 January, Donald Trump was sworn in as president, but his actions and those of his government have already triggered tectonic shifts in geopolitics. The first statement, which was not in line with the consistent policy of either NATO or the European Union, was made on February 12 at NATO headquarters by US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who said that a) a return to Ukraine’s 2014 borders was an unrealistic goal, and b) that the US would not support Ukraine’s aspirations for NATO membership. Neither of these positions had been communicated or discussed in advance with allies, as is standard practice.

On the same day, and again without prior consultation with allies, President Trump held a telephone conversation with Vladimir Putin. This was the first phone call by a US leader to the Kremlin since the start of full-scale war. After that, the US President called Zelenskyy. The next step in US-Russian relations were the talks on peace in Ukraine, which were held on February 18 in Saudi Arabia, and to which neither representatives of Ukraine nor other partners were invited, despite the well-known position of “nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine” and the EU’s insistence on being a participant in such talks.

At the same time, on February 17, French President Emmanuel Macron gathered leaders of several countries, including the NATO Secretary General and the EU leadership, to discuss the situation. On February 24, Macron held talks with Trump at the White House, followed by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to Washington. The main topic of the talks was peace for Ukraine. And on February 28, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the White House. It was planned to sign an agreement between Ukraine and the United States on rare earth materials, but the meeting was foiled by the public humiliation of Zelenskyy by Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance. Almost all EU and NATO leaders spoke in support of the Ukrainian president. On March 2, Zelenskyy met with Europeans in London at the initiative of Starmer. And on March 4, Trump announced the suspension of aid to Ukraine. On the same day, Zelenskyy made a post on his social media page in which he admitted that the meeting did not go as planned and expressed regret about this, and Trump, speaking in Congress, stated that the Ukrainians were ready for negotiations.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE SPECIAL MEETING OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL

President Zelenskyy will be attending the meeting. "I have invited President Zelenskyy to come to Brussels on the occasion of the meeting of the European Council to discuss with us the latest developments," said European Council President Costa in an invitation letter.

The first item on the agenda is Ukraine. "As far as Ukraine is concerned, there is a new momentum, which should lead to a comprehensive, just and lasting peace. It is therefore important for us to exchange on how to further support Ukraine and on the principles that should be respected going forward. The EU and its member states are ready to take more responsibility for Europe’s security. We should therefore be prepared for a possible European contribution to the security guarantees that will be necessary to ensure a lasting peace in Ukraine," the European Council President noted.

In particular, EU leaders will determine what security guarantees the EU could provide in the event of a peace agreement. The EU is considering two components in this regard: the first is support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian armed forces so that they can defend themselves in the event of new aggression by Russia in the future.

The second dimension of security guarantees is the possibility of a peacekeeping mission. Discussions on this issue are still ongoing, as it is still premature to go into details at this time, as there is no peace agreement or ceasefire.

EU leaders may also discuss the issue of an EU special representative in the peace process for Ukraine. This idea has already been discussed during President Costa's bilateral consultations with the leaders of the EU member states, and it has found their support.

The second item on the agenda of the special meeting will be strengthening European defence, as Europe needs to take urgent measures to be more sovereign and autonomous from the United States. The details of the ReArm Europe plan were recently unveiled by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.