‘Broadening’ consensus on need to defeat Putin among EU leaders, says Lithuanian president

BRUSSELS — Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda is inside the room when fellow EU leaders meet and he's sensing a growing agreement among them on the view that Russia must be defeated in Ukraine.

“I think the understanding is broadening that we have to defeat Russia, because otherwise there will be a continuation of this tragic story,” Nausėda told POLITICO, speaking after last week's summit that discussed the war in Ukraine.

“At least I don't see leaders who want to call [Russian President Vladimir] Putin to talk about the issues in Ukraine. We do not have any leader who still trusts Putin,” he said, but then added "apart from two."

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán is the EU leader with the closest ties to Putin and, to a lesser extent, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico is also seen as pro-Russia.

Nausėda's view from behind closed doors is mirrored by public statements from EU leaders.

The most dramatic shift has been by French President Emmanuel Macron, who has ditched his early efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the war by negotiating with Putin directly.

Macron now talks of potentially sending Western troops to Ukraine, and earlier this month said: "We are convinced that the defeat of Russia is indispensable to security and stability in Europe."

That brings the French president into line with views further east.

Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski said: "Helping Ukraine by defeating Putin is the right thing to do in the broadest sense of the word. It is morally sound, strategically wise, militarily justified, and economically beneficial."

The leaders of the Baltic countries — with fresh memories of being part of Moscow's empire — are adamant that Ukraine must be helped to defeat Russia.

"We have to do everything so that Ukraine wins and Russia loses this war," said Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas.

While the debate is shifting in the direction of working toward Russia's defeat and not a negotiated peace, that doesn't carry much weight unless it's accompanied by weapons and support for Kyiv.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said the real issue of helping Ukraine militarily is “a question of political will.”

The closer a country lies to Russia, the stronger the view that Putin poses a fundamental threat to peace and must be defeated.

But several countries further from Russia's borders are assess the level of threat posed by Russia differently.

Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez warned reporters after last week's summit that you “cannot talk happily about third world wars, nor convey messages that obviously worry citizens.” And he stressed:  “We have to use another language and not contribute to this escalation of war.”

That's something that Nausėda and other frontline leaders are hoping to change.

“If [Russia] will break the first defense line [in Ukraine], they will enter and that they will go after us and that there will be second defense line,” he argued, adding that Russia is "threatening and challenging all democratic systems in Europe. All included: Germany, France, Spain, and even Portugal, which is pretty far away from the frontline.”