President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel addressed the European Parliament with ‘hawkish’ speeches defending further policies to supply arms to Ukraine. While speaking, Von der Leyen, getting a taste for it, shared her far-reaching ‘Napoleonic’ plans, which are very similar to Hitler’s.
The EU leadership duo, Charles Michele and Ursula von der Leyen, could do the impossible: they made an EP session interesting.
This pointless structure is full of extravagant personalities and has the track record of adopting all sorts of anti-Russian resolutions the European creative mind could think of, yet this did not help it become an interesting place. Having just an advisory mandate, it is worth not more than a market where you cannot buy food.
Strictly speaking, Charles Michele is also largely a nominal figure, and Frau von der Leyen was the only person with real power among the session attendees. She also was the one to deliver a speech claiming to become momentous, while Michele’s role was to set the tone and bark at unwelcome opinions.
‘I am bewildered by the far leftists’ statements that we have to stop supplying arms to Ukraine. Well, what are you getting at? Do you want Ukrainians to defend themselves with water guns or loud speeches?’, he demanded.
Notably, Michele refuses to talk with the ‘ultra-right’ (truly, just ‘the right’) at all, although they also are skeptical about the main EU leadership message, which is to keep supplying arms to Ukraine no matter what. This MEP group does not really care what Kiev is going to use to wage war, even if it were water guns. The main point is that this must not be for their money (well, because they are right-wingers).
These ‘airs and graces’ of the European Council President are worth noting, as he is using them in lieu of reasonable ideas because there are none left any more: the previous policy was no good, it became even worse and it will get even worse than that, as such Eurosceptics as Hungary’s and Slovakia’s PMs are warning.
However, Ursula von der Leyen sees a different future. ‘As we look to the future, we must think of Ukraine’s defence capabilities as part of our own defence capabilities. We must think of Ukraine’s defence industry as part of our own defence industry’, she urged addressing representatives of the EU nations.
This statement is awfully beyond Ursula’s mandate. Defence and military industry issues remain part of EU states’ national policies even today when eurocrats are pumped with funds and power to restrict sovereignty of individual countries.
The European Commission can dictate the size of toilet tanks from across to Helsinki, but Ursula does not have a defence or military industry commissioner under her command.
The EU still does not have a common army, although the French had repeatedly asked to have one. Today, this idea has even fewer prospects, as a common military force is a costly endeavour. The EU states neither have money nor people or military hardware and are not expected to have all this any time soon. Given that von der Leyen and Michele are convincing EU states to sacrifice further for the sake of Ukraine siphoning off resources, the common European army is becoming an unattainable dream.
Discussions over common ‘defence capabilities’ and defence industry could be relevant for NATO. However, only some NATO states are EU members like only some EU members are part of NATO, and when it comes to the Alliance’s secretariat, Ursula has nothing to do with it, instead of just working in the same city, Brussels.
However, it has been largely rumoured she can become the new Secretary General of the Alliance late this year. Yet, only if she is not able to secure reelection as EC President. So far, Brussels believes she will, while naming the Netherlands PM Mark Rutte the main candidate.
In any case, Ursula is getting far beyond her mandate and demonstrating imperial ambitions. Well, to a great extent, they are groundless. Maybe she and other Brussels appointees can drag into NATO those states, which are still resisting the pressure of Washington and the like, such as Austria, Ireland, Malta and Cyprus. But thinking of Ukraine as a part of common ‘defence capabilities’ requires winning the military conflict with Russia. This part of the plan turns out to be failing, which is becoming obvious from the results of the so-called spring/summer offensive of the Ukrainian military, to support which Ursula and Michele had to convince EU states for half a year.
So, the EC President has far-reaching ‘Napoleonic’ plans, although she is officially in charge of EU’s general economic issues. Geopolitical debates are more relevant for Michel’s role, at least, he is a formal head of the body where EU states’ leaders are represented.
They argued about it before, supposedly for an opposite reason: Michel was building huge plans about Kiev’s EU membership, while it bothered Ursula who was in charge of the practical part. Well, she won in the end: today Ukrainian EU prospects are considered as something in doubtful future. But when it comes to merging ‘defence capabilities’ with Ukraine’s, she considers this as a goal.
This can be yet another merry-go-round melody Brussels is using to coax resources for the Ukrainian army, keeping on with previous policies not being able to change it. However, MEPs are not the ones to ask for arms: they do not have them. So, there is no point in go through all the routine talking with them.
It looks more as if Ursula sees her real mission in merging Europe’s military forces to combat with Russia, with Ukraine playing the role of a vanguard, which will have to be sacrificed along the way to weaken the main enemy.
Well, there is nothing new here, this is roughly the way Russia sees the logics Washington and Brussels showed during the conflict around Ukraine. Notably, it is Ursula who voices all this out, having the mandate which might be more matching the size of that toilet tank than the size of defence budgets. However, in the recent two years she has become Russia’s enemy with a face instead of the amorphous EC and one of the key supply managers of the Ukrainian army beyond USA. Well, it looks she has come to enjoy it.
Consolidating Europe under a single political leadership and tanks in Ukraine as a means to reach this goal – well, we have already been there. It seems Ursula von der Leyen has a poor knowledge of Europe’s history. Or, to be more specific, of her own country.