In an interview with the host of the Euronews morning show "Europe Today," EPP MEP Riho Terras, a retired general and former commander of the Estonian Defence Forces, stated that "Europeans do not understand the urgency of the situation. It’s not just about Ukraine," he said.
“Americans believe everything Putin says,” stated Estonian MEP Riho Terras (EPP) on the Euronews morning show "Europe Today" in Strasbourg. Terras is a retired general. From 2011 to 2018, he was the commander of the Estonian Defence Forces.
In his opinion, the 28-point peace plan promoted by the U.S. administration is a "Russian plan to force Ukraine to capitulate," and U.S. President Donald Trump will "take everything from Putin in just a week."
“I am very surprised that Donald Trump is acting as a lackey for Putin’s capitulation plan,” Terras said.
Last week, a leak of a peace settlement text, which is believed to be too favorable to Moscow, raised concerns among Europeans.
The revised but not yet finalized plan included a reduction of the Ukrainian army, large territorial concessions, imposing a veto on Kyiv’s NATO membership, and other conditions that were seen as capitulatory.
U.S. government representatives led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Ukrainian officials, and a European delegation met in Geneva on Sunday to discuss amendments to the plan. Europeans hope that their input will allow Kyiv to buy time and sway Trump to their side.
On Wednesday, speaking from Strasbourg, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned: "The Russian aggression program has not changed, and Ukraine may only be the beginning."
To assist Kyiv, which will require additional funding next year, Europeans are discussing the provision of an unprecedented reparations loan tied to frozen Russian assets held in Belgium.
Sources told Euronews that the European Commission is preparing further legal work to ensure the proposal receives the green light from Belgian authorities, as this country is the holder of the assets. The document could be published as early as Thursday.
In response, MEP Terras said: "We are already late; we need to start funding very quickly /.../ Don’t tell me that the EU, with a population of 500 million and a GDP of 29 trillion euros, cannot support Ukraine with a much smaller amount.”
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