The second emergency meeting of European statesmen is taking place today – on Wednesday, the 19th of February, in Paris. Following criticism that French President Macron excluded a number of countries from the first meeting, this time, the French capital will host the leaders of ten European countries and Canada, alongside France. Additionally, Prime Minister Robert Golob will also be able to join the talks via video conference. Meanwhile, the former ambassador to Washington warned that the credibility of Slovenia’s foreign policy is approaching zero.
“A new meeting in Paris. The Croatians were not invited either, probably because of Milanovič. I don’t know, it seems to me like all the pro-Russian countries have been left “at the door”. Strange, isn’t it?” wondered security expert Boštjan Perne.
Reuters reports that the countries expected to attend today’s meeting are Norway, Canada, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Finland, Romania, Sweden and Belgium. The meeting is expected to be partly hybrid. The final list and the planned course of the meeting have not yet been communicated by the Elysée Palace. However, according to the Elysée Palace, most of the participants will participate remotely.
This meeting will also focus on European security, the potential security guarantees that European countries could offer to Ukraine after the ceasefire, the increase in defence spending, as well as the situation in the countries of the European Union after it became clear that they were excluded from the high-level negotiations on peace in Ukraine.
The first meeting was criticised by heads of state who did not receive an invitation to Paris. “A new informal discussion, especially a week after the European Council meeting and a few days before the German elections, leads nowhere,” the Czech Prime Minister, Petr Fiala, said on Monday. In Prague, the question was asked why only Poland was invited to the meeting at the Elysée Palace when it is the Czech Republic that has taken in the most Ukrainian refugees (per capita).
Slovenia on the third track
Apparently, Slovenia is not among the invited countries this time either. While Golob has publicly boasted in the past that he has friendly relations with the French President, these relations were apparently not enough to get a place at the diplomatic table.
“Slovenia’s credibility in foreign policy is declining. Our influence at the global level is approaching zero. A misguided focus, activism and slamming partner countries, the USA and Israel. Aid to Ukraine in arms and equipment is dwindling, and this is becoming increasingly clear. We are in the midst of a geopolitical storm and a possible Cold War 2.0, and Slovenia needs a foreign policy reset,” commented former Ambassador to Washington, Tone Kajzer.
In a press statement, the Prime Minister did not seem too saddened by the fact that he had not received an invitation to the first meeting. “We see today’s informal meeting of some European leaders in Paris primarily as a meeting of influential European NATO members,” he commented on Monday.
The State Secretary for National Security, Vojko Volk, also responded to the turbulent developments on the diplomatic floor. “There is no way things can be worked out without Ukraine. A peace that is imposed cannot be lasting and cannot be just,” he commented. He did not give a specific answer regarding the questionnaire addressed by the US administration to European leaders. Namely, the questions were mainly about the willingness of European countries to deploy troops to Ukraine after the ceasefire. “The discussion on the deployment of troops to Ukraine can only be a matter of principle at this point in time and is certainly premature until it is clear with whom and how peace will be negotiated,” he said. As for the questionnaire, he said that the response to it would be coordinated in Slovenia and abroad.
Chaos in the Prime Minister’s cabinet?
President of the Republic, Nataša Pirc Musar, also commented on the Paris talks, writing: “Despite the fact that most European countries have stood by Ukraine throughout and still do, Europe has become vulnerable. The new US administration is aware of this, otherwise, it would not have made such a bold announcement to bring peace to Ukraine without the help of European countries, without also respecting the fundamental principles of international law.” She also expressed her disappointment at the fact that the leaders of all European Union countries did not attend the meeting in Paris.
Meanwhile, State Secretary Volk said in a press statement that the President’s response was not coordinated with the Prime Minister’s Office. The President’s Office replied (following an inquiry by the media outlet info360) that the statement was coordinated with Foreign Minister Tanja Fajon, and a draft text was also sent to the Prime Minister’s Office. “The President has not received any comments on the proposed text. She also sent the draft statement directly to Prime Minister Robert Golob on Sunday, who, in his reply, informed the President of some additional details that were useful and which the President supported, but he did not comment on the text sent by the President,” the President’s Office told info360.
Meanwhile, the President’s statements have come under heavy criticism from opposition leader Janez Janša. “Have you forgotten that you sent us to Moscow with Tanja Fajon and Marta Kos at the helm in the past? And after that, you were ready to fight for almost three years until the last drop of blood – Ukrainian blood, of course. When it comes to the really modern weapons that could have made a difference, all this time, the whole of the European Union and the USA have not given Ukraine even 5 percent of their reserves. The blood of hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians is not only on Putin’s hands as the main culprit, but also on the hands of all the EU and US presidents and ministers who could have helped decisively – but did not,” he wrote.
Ž. K.
