Published on •Updated
Russia will not succeed in forcing Ukraine to surrender through a deal with Washington because Europe will continue to back Kyiv, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas told Euronews in an exclusive interview.
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Kallas, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, said Russia had miscalculated since last year’s Anchorage summit by trying to force Ukraine to cave in through a deal with the US.
“The Russians want to discuss and negotiate with the US, so that the US would deliver what they want. But we have our own requests to Russia,” she said. “The message is that you need to talk to the Europeans.”
Asked about the diesel deal and energy ceasefire announced by US President Donald Trump, under which Russia would supply 300,000 tonnes of diesel to the US and global markets, Kallas said the arrangement was a gift to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The question is: what has he given in return? What we see is that he’s actually increasing the attacks on civilians and civilian infrastructure. The ceasefire that was also announced is not really working on the Russian side,” she said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the Financial Times that Kyiv would resume strikes on Russian refineries despite US pressure, including interruptions to intelligence sharing and a weakened Starlink signal during heavy Russian attacks.
For Kallas, the central issue is that Russia must end its war of aggression, which would also bring an end to Ukraine’s attacks on Russian refineries.
“If we look at the big picture, the majority of the financing for this war comes from oil. And that is why Ukraine is also targeting them [the refineries], while Russia is targeting the energy infrastructure inside Ukraine, to cause as much suffering as possible to the Ukrainian people in the upcoming winter,” she said.
Kallas insisted that international pressure should be directed at Russia to end its invasion, rather than at Ukraine to accept Moscow’s demands – a position she said Europe had consistently maintained.
“If we did this together with the US, then the message to Russia would be clear: stop this war, and all your worries when it comes to oil refineries and whatnot will also stop,” she said.
Asked whether a wave of elections in key EU countries, including the prospect of Marine Le Pen becoming French president, signalled waning support for Ukraine, Kallas acknowledged that public attitudes had shifted over four years of war.
However, she said Europe needed to present a united front for its foreign policy to be effective.
“This is what the Russians are actually playing at: that the Europeans will get tired and then they will get what they want. And what I want to stress is that their appetite will then grow,” Kallas said.
