Europe must double down on defence against Russian aggression
Europe must continue – and intensify – its support for Ukraine. Not only because Ukraine is the victim of an illegal war of aggression, but because European security itself is at stake.
For four years, the case for supporting Ukraine has rightly been grounded in the principles of the UN Charter: sovereignty, territorial integrity and the prohibition of wars of aggression. These principles remain valid. But recent developments elsewhere in the world, including the escalation in Iran, risk eroding the credibility of a purely rules-based argument in the eyes of many countries.
Europe should therefore be clear about a more direct reality: this is about defending ourselves.
Russia’s ambitions extend beyond Ukraine. Moscow seeks to revise Europe’s security order and reassert control over its neighbours. Allowing Russia to prevail would not end the conflict; it would only bring the front line closer to the European Union and NATO.
Russia has already opened another front. Across Europe, it has been conducting a covert war of cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns, sabotage and systematic interference in democratic processes. Few countries anywhere would tolerate such actions against their societies.
The geopolitical context reinforces the urgency. With the United States increasingly engaged in the Middle East, political attention and military resources are likely to be diverted away from Europe.
Supporting Ukraine is therefore not simply solidarity. It is forward defence.
By helping Ukraine resist Russian aggression today, Europe is defending its own security tomorrow. Failing to do so would invite greater instability and far more costly conflicts in the future.
Fabian Zuleeg is Chief Executive and Chief Economist at the European Policy Centre.
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