In response to the unprovoked and unjustified Russian invasion of Ukraine, transatlantic partners are jointly supporting Ukraine and responding to Putin’s aggression. Following President Biden’s visit to Brussels, the Secretary General of the European External Action Service (EEAS) Stefano Sannino joins us for a discussion on the EU response to the Russian invasion, the recently adopted EU Strategic Compass, and the EU-U.S.-NATO partnership to address key global challenges. The discussion was chaired by Robin Quinville, a senior diplomat and former Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin.

Selected Quotes

Stefano Sannino

“The aggression of Russia against Ukraine has generated a sense and need of unity within the European Union and between the European Union and the United States; and I would say the transatlantic community more in general... And, from a certain point of view in Europe, it has been quite unique how we have managed—very easily—to agree on this very substantial package of sanctions, but also on the decision to use our financial instruments to support the supply of arms to Ukraine to defend against the attack. That’s also something that they had not done before and that’s the other important element to underline: the opening of our borders to the flow of refugees—more than three and a half million that have come to Europe—and they have created, in just a few weeks, this very strong sense of solidarity.”

“They (the EU) want to stress that the investment in the military capabilities will remain and will belong to the member states. We are not speaking here about creating a new European structure, but to facilitate our member states to develop these plans and then… these capabilities can be used both in a NATO environment or in a European Union environment. So, in a way, it is a way of strengthening, also the NATO alliance, and the participation of the European Union to meet.”

“On the chapter of the action that we need to take (regarding the EU Strategic Compass), we will need to work on creating the conditions for this rapid deployment capabilities to be able to come in. So, the idea is that of defining, first of all, what are the scenarios, under which this could happen. I would say, partly a theoretical exercise… but it can take into account the experience that we have developed over years. I just want to remind that we have now, active on the ground, eighteen operations and missions… mainly in Africa, but also in the Middle East, and in Eastern Europe. So, to define, first of all, the scenarios, and then to define which are the specific elements that we need in terms of control and capabilities to generate this force.”

Robin S. Quinville

“We have seen an absolute drumbeat of diplomacy and action over the last weeks, as we are seeing this war in Ukraine that is changing Europe and is changing how we face the strategic challenges ahead. And, I look at that drumbeat and I see that we have worked to be as close as humanly possible on all of the actions that we are taking. First, to prepare those actions, to signal those actions, and then to take those actions, not only here in the U.S. but also in NATO and the EU. It has been an impressive amount of coordination."