This was highlighted by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas after the meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg on 14 April 2025.

Thank you, it is good to see you here in Luxembourg. It is my first time in this building, so it is interesting and different. 

We had many important topics that we discussed today. First, of course, Ukraine. It is clear that all Member States want peace. And, remember, we had 27 [EU] countries who supported the ceasefire. Also, Ukraine agreed to unconditional ceasefire already a month ago. 

Yet, we are seeing that Russia alone wants war, because we [saw one of] the deadliest attacks yesterday: Sumy air strikes over the weekend. It is clear that they are stalling and [do] not want peace at all. So, the only way to get Russia to negotiate seriously is putting some more pressure on Russia. 

Then, second the military aid to Ukraine. I mean, one [part] is putting pressure on Russia, but then the other part is also helping Ukraine to defend itself. It is clear that we are the biggest provider of military aid, we are also the biggest buyer from the Ukraine defence industry and the biggest supporter of the defence industry. We also have the mission of training Ukrainian soldiers [EUMAM Ukraine], [we have already trained] over 73,000 soldiers. So, today we also discussed what more we [can] do when it comes to the missions: should we expand the mandate of the missions that we have in order to contribute to the security guarantees of coalition of the willing. Then, when it comes to the initiative of delivering 2 million rounds of ammunition to Ukraine, I am happy to see that we have already reached two-thirds of the target. We still do not have 100%, but we definitely need to move forward with that. The large majority of Member States agrees that we need to do more. I am also happy to see Norway contributing with €400 million part, so [the support] goes beyond the European Union. When it comes to the support for this year, then already this year, Members States [of] the European Union have contributed more than €23 billion to Ukraine. Last year, it was [€] 20 billion together with the help of United States, altogether [€]40 billion last year. So, we still have room to go. 

Then third: putting the pressure on Russia. It is clear, that we are working on the 17th package [of sanctions]. Also, the shadow fleet and different elements there to put it together for the Foreign Affairs Council in May. 

Q&A 

Q. Are you tracking which countries or candidate countries intend to visit Moscow on the 9th of May? And of course, it will be a huge celebration in Moscow, for Putin. Do you plan some visit to Kyiv on the same day or the date near to 9th of May?

Thank you. We made it very clear that we do not want any candidate country to participate in these events on the 9th of May in Moscow. So that was very clear, the message was there. When it comes to visits to Kyiv, then of course, I have called, on all the Member States, but also on representatives of the institutions to visit Kyiv and Ukraine as much as possible, to really show our solidarity and that we are with Ukraine. Of course, we are always looking for options to visit and go also together with deliverables to Ukraine. Thank you. 

Q. HRVP, you mentioned this morning two-thirds of progress towards your ammunition initiative. Could you give us a sense of whether any meaningful progress has been achieved today, and by when you expect to like hit the 100%? And could you give us a sense of when this ammunition would be delivered? Because now we are talking pledges. Is there a sense of when they could actually arrive in Ukraine?

Thank you. As soon as possible is the short answer, because they need it now. Because these attacks are going through, there are civilian casualties in great numbers. That is why they need the ammunition. That is why they also need the air defence. The calls by Ukraine to have more air defence have been really vocal as well. So, that is why the short answer is: as soon as possible. [There are], of course, commitments, but commitments also need to be followed. So, some Member States have already proposed ammunition and some have proposed funding for ammunition. The Czech initiative has mapped the ammunition that is available and the external action service has done so, too. So, we can move quite fast. Thank you. 

Q. This morning, some of the ministers, when they came in at the doorsteps, underlined the fact that the attack in Sumy was not only horrific, but it was intentional. Then, we have different words from the US, where President Trump said that they made a mistake. So, I was wondering which is the true and correct assessment of that. 

I think it is in everybody's interest that, Russia realises it made a mistake, but it made a mistake by attacking Ukraine, that it cannot win in Ukraine because the will of the Ukrainian people is not broken. And European countries will - and not only European countries but many other countries - will stand by Ukraine. And I hope that it is also clear to everybody now that if you want the killing to stop, you should put the pressure on Russia who actually does the killing. Thank you. 

Q. A number of countries have been calling for a while to stop LNG imports from Russia. Last year, I think Russia gained around €7 or €8 billion with these shipments. Now the EU is offering to the US to replace some of those imports by US imports - or imports from the US. Is there a new case now for sanctions on Russian LNG in the 17th package? 

Thank you. Like I said, we are working on the 17th package. So, of course, putting the sanctions on oil and gas and putting more on that side would have a bigger effect because this is how they are funding also their war. The discussions are ongoing, but you know very well that we need 27 countries to agree. But my point is that we should put as strong a package together as possible, hopefully also with our international partners. Thank you. 

Link to the video: https://audiovisual.ec.europa.eu/en/video/I-270847v