LOS ANGELES (OD).–European Council President Ursula von der Leyen showed her outrage over recent Russian missile and drone attacks in Kiev, coming dangerously close {50 meters] to the European Union mission, shattering windows, but, more importantly, EU nerves. Von der Leyen said “the Kremlin will stop at nothing” and called for “maximum pressure” on the Kremlin. Von der Leyen should call for maxium pressure on Ukraine’s 47-year-old President Volodymyr Zelensky who continues to bomb strategic targets, including oil infrastructure, deep inside the Russian Federation. But instead of Von der Leyen calling for an immediate peace on both sides she targets the Kremlin when she knows the risks of war to EU offices in Kiev. “It shows that the Kremlin will stop at nothing to terrorize Ukraine, blindly killing civilians, men, women and children, and and even targeting the European Union,” Von der Leyen said.
Von der Leyen shows how out-of-the-loop she is in the peace process, clearly taking Zelensky’s side no matter what he’s doing to attack the Russian Federation. Russian President Vladimir Putin reminds Kiev that if they refuse to go to the peace table, the war goes on unabated, with all its ferocity. Why Von der Leyen thinks the EU is exempt from the war zone is anyone’s guess. If she thinks there’s a risk to EU personnel in Kiev, why hasn’t she evacuated the mission? Von der Leyen sounds outraged that Russia got within 50 meters of the EU mission in Kiev. What does she think the risks are in an active war zone? President Donald Trump has been trying to get a peace deal for months, something the EU has fought, catering to Zelensky’s view that he should not surrender any sovereign territory to the Kremlin in any peace. Where does Von der Leyen come up with these things?
Putin takes the peace talks seriously but is not surrendering to Zelensky or the EU as they trying to slap more sanctions on the Kremlin. EU Foreign Policy chief Kaja Kallas said on X that the bloc was “summoning the Russian envoy in Brussels.” “No diplomatic mission should ever be a target,” said Kallas, agreeing with Von der Leyen that it was a near miss on the EU. Von der Leyen says the overnight strike “was an attack also on our delegation,” Ursula said, knowing, that if Putin wanted to he the EU mission he would have done it. When it comes to risks of EU personnel in the Kiev war zone, Zelensky has the EU and other embassies thinking that Kiev is a safe-and-secure place when it is clear not. Instead of threatening the Russian Federation, von der Leyen should consult more closely with President Donald Trump to see how she could be helpful in bringing about peace.
Taking Zelensky’s side doesn’t help the peace process at all, giving Zelensky false hopes that the EU is prepared to take on the heavy burden of funding the Ukraine War. Zelensky would prefer to keep fighting the Kremlin, refusing to admit that three-and-a-half of war have brought Ukraine only death and destruction. Trump told Zelensky to cut his losses, end the war and get on with the lengthy process of rebuilding Ukraine. Zelensky didn’t like Trump’s peace formula involved Ukraine trading land-for-peace, the only realistic way to end the war. Putin is not going to end the war unless he gets something for all the blood-and-treasure spent on the last three-and-half years. So if Ursula really wanted to protect EU assets in Kiev she would work on Zelensky to come up with a realistic plan to end the war. Continuing the battler doesn’t nothing to bring the war to an end.
EU’s mission sustained damage with blown out windows and ceiling tiles caving in. Von der Leyen said she was relieved that none of their staff were injurcd, despite the building sustaining some damage from the close missile strikes. EU’s spokeswoman in Kiev Anita Hipper said the EU delegation was “fully operational” and that “our staff will remain present in the country.” Von der Leyen said the damage was “another grim reminder” of the need to keep “maximum pressure on Russia.” Von der Leyen’s analysis is the exact opposite of reality, recognizing the immediate need of Zelensky to work with his peace delegation to come up with a plan to end the war. Von der Leyen talks like she’s ready for the EU to send troop into Ukraine to fight the Russian Federation. Zelensky’s only way out of the war is to follow Trump and let him negotiate a peace deal with Putin.
Slapping Russia with more sanctions won’t get Putin closer to the peace table. Only seeing Zelensky make the kind of concessions necessary to end the war will finally end the war zone that now threatens the EU. Von der Leyen hasn’t been helpful at all in working with Trump to bring an end to the war. “That means tightening our sanctions regime, “advancing “ work to use Russian frozen assets. So far, the EU has used only Russia’s investment interest on hundreds-of-billions of dollars in frozen Russian assets, using the $2.5 billion in interest pay for Ukraine’s war expenses. It’s questionable where the EU can touch Russia’s frozen assets without inviting eventual lawsuits. Von der Leyen said “that are strengthening and protecting our external borders with Russia and Belarus.” So, Von der Leyen sees Russia as a threat to the EU, not just Ukraine.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
