High Representative Kaja Kallas: “We have to help Ukraine end this war”

Dear Ambassadors,

No matter where in the world you are working, or how far you are from Ukraine, it is important that we all understand what Russia’s intentions really are there.

While you are my top priority, Ukraine has to be our top priority. 

Because Putin wants all of Ukraine, and it is not his to have.

He is not concerned about NATO – if he was, he wouldn’t be pulling his troops from the borders of NATO to fight in Ukraine – he is more concerned about the expansion of democracy and the values that the EU stands for.

The problem is that Russia is fighting against us a few hundred kilometres from our borders.

Their missiles and drones have already crossed ours.

We have to help end this war.

But for peace to endure, in the way that Ukraine deserves, we must push the Kremlin to change its goals.

The only language they speak is strength.

This is why I welcome the US commitment to peace through strength.

Europe is already economically strong.

The EU has the strength and the means to outspend and outproduce Russia. What we need is political will.

And with our allies we are even stronger. Our collective GDP with the UK, US, and Canada is 25 times larger than that of Russia’s.

But we must all be stronger on Russia.

• Sanctioning those who help Russia keep its war machine running;
• Blocking profits from oil and gas that directly support the state budget.

Our sanctions are working. Russia’s economy is struggling. We cannot loosen the grip now.

We also have to be stronger for Ukraine.

The EU is Ukraine's largest overall donor. We have contributed over 134 billion euro, including close to 50 billion in military aid.

We cannot be talking about doing less when we should be doing more. Where there is a will, there is a way.

So I don't accept the argument that this or that has never been done before. I want us to find further financing solutions for Ukraine.

The Ukrainians fight very bravely. And with our support at every step of the way.

Russia is an existential threat to us all.

So I don’t want to hear what we can’t do. I want to discuss and act on what we can do.

We should be the architects of creative solutions, not foot-soldiers along well-trodden paths.

I want this to be a guiding principle for this mandate.

Which brings me to working with those we can.

The EU has many partners around the world.

But there are none that are as important as the United States.

Some of us may not like everything our counterparts say or do there, but that’s democracy, we have to deal with it.

Transatlantic trade and investment supports more than 16 million jobs on both sides of the Atlantic. It accounts for 42% of global GDP. We need America and America needs us.

But you have to listen to your friends too.

Just as we want the United States to help stop Russian aggression in Europe, we have to understand America’s core interests.

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I really know what we’ve got here, it’s good, and we have to keep it.

We’ve also got a responsibility to share what we have, play a geopolitical role and grow this going forward.

Your experience and skills are truly unmatched and we need these skills, to navigate through this period. I know that we can!

We have clear understanding what we want to deliver:

• Ukraine’s defence for Europeans’` defence;
• Maintaining and strengthening our alliances with like-minded countries;
• Pursuing peace in the Middle East;
• And nurturing mutually beneficial partnerships;

And with a team that pulls together, we can deliver on our priorities, grow our geopolitical role, and strengthen our greatest asset as the most predictable, reliable and credible partner in the world.

So, lets do this together! Thank you!

The full text is available at the link: https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/eu-ambassadors-conference-2025-opening-speech-high-representativevice-president-kaja-kallas_en