If you thought Josep Borrell ("Europe is a garden") was a misfortune as EU High representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, wait until you hear his successor. During the European Parliament hearing to confirm members of the new European Commission Nov. 12, the designated High Representative Kaja Kallas said that the war in Ukraine will cease only when Russia is defeated.
Kallas was responding to MEP Roberto Vannacci, who asked: Since the Draghi report, “the true guru of this new Commission,” made it clear that one of the underlying reasons for the EU’s reduction in competitiveness was “the loss of the EU’s largest energy supplier, namely Russia,” as well as “the resetting of geopolitical balances and the growth of international tensions—Can you tell us what are the top three measures you would take to recover the EU’s largest energy supplier, namely Russia, smooth out international tensions and thus end the war between Russia and Ukraine?”
With a fixed grin, Kallas answered that, concerning the energy issue, it is not her jurisdiction, but she knows that the Commission is taking care of replacing Russian gas with other sources, such from North Africa. As for the war, the former Estonian Prime Minister replied: “The war in Ukraine will end when Russia realizes it has made a mistake, as in Afghanistan, and that is when they withdraw their troops, because they realize they cannot win this war.”
