EU’s Kallas hits back at Trump for saying Europe lags behind US on aid to Ukraine By Reuters

Written by Andrew Gray and Lily Baer (OTC:)

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas on Wednesday criticized Donald Trump for saying Europe had fallen behind the United States in aid to Ukraine and insisted the bloc should have a seat at the table when it comes time for peace talks. .

Trump said Washington contributed more to Ukraine than Europe, but Kallas said Europe was the largest contributor.

“By my count, we have given more than 134 billion euros to Ukraine. This makes us the largest international donor,” Kallas told Reuters in an interview when asked about the US president’s comments on Tuesday that Europe should pay more.

Callas said it was important for Europe to participate in the talks being held to end the war sparked by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Some European officials have expressed concerns that Trump might try to make a direct deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

She added: “Whatever negotiations or agreement exist between Russia and Ukraine, this also concerns Europe. Therefore, nothing related to Europe without Europe is the main thing here as well.”

Kallas expressed some optimism that the European Union will reach an agreement to keep the sanctions imposed on Russia in place before they expire at the end of this month.

Hungary has so far refused to support the renewal, saying the EU should first consult with the Trump administration about the future of sanctions on Russia.

“I see no reason to weaken or lift sanctions now,” Kalas said.

“The reason I am optimistic is that we have always finally reached unity and have maintained unity so far, so I am sure we will succeed this time as well,” she added, referring to previous discussions on sanctions.

She said that European Union officials are examining what can be done about frozen Russian assets within the Union. The union is currently using asset gains to help Ukraine, but has not used the assets themselves.