The German Foreign Minister, Olaf Scholz, got together with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday, on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, and basically said that, you know, there’s no way to have lasting peace if Ukraine doesn’t get to guarantee its own sovereignty. That’s pretty straightforward, right? I mean, the idea is that Ukraine needs to be in control of its own destiny.
Scholz was pretty clear about this after their meeting in the Bavarian capital, saying “Nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine. There can only be peace if Ukraine’s sovereignty is assured.” He also made a point to thank Zelenskyy for their discussion on taking joint steps towards a fair and lasting peace. And, you know, it’s worth noting that this isn’t just Scholz’s opinion – it’s a pretty widely-held view, especially in Europe.
German Foreign Minister’s Thoughts on European Defense
Now, Annalena Baerbock, also a German Foreign Minister, met with Zelenskyy too, and she had some pretty strong words on the matter. She said, basically, that Europe is at an existential moment, and we need to defend democracy and freedom. She urged everyone to think about European defense, and to make some serious investments – more than we’ve ever seen before. As she put it, “Everyone must decide if they are on the side of the free world or on the side of their aggressors.” It’s a pretty stark choice, when you think about it.
Zelenskyy, for his part, gave a speech on Saturday where he called for a common European army and a common foreign policy. He’s been meeting with all sorts of European leaders, like Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store and Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof. And, just the day before, he’d had a meeting with US Vice President JD Vance. So, it’s clear that there are a lot of people talking about this stuff, and trying to figure out the best way forward. The question is, what’s going to happen next?