OMG, so like, things between Ukraine and its Western besties are, like, totally on the rocks after this super awkward and, like, disastrous meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the White House. So, basically, Trump was all, “Do we even need to keep helping Ukraine?” So while the U.S. are twiddling their thumbs, the European Union (EU) are stepping up to figure out what to do, which is why all the EU leaders had this, like, super dramatic emergency summit in Brussels on March 6.
So, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen showed up with this huge proposal—like, €150 billion in loans for military stuff. And basically, she was like, “Europe needs to take its destiny into its own hands.” Which, like, duh, because if the U.S. is gonna be all wishy-washy about helping Ukraine, Europe is gonna have to, like, get its act together.
Germany, which usually plays it kinda safe when it comes to spending on military stuff, is now, like, totally rethinking things. So Friedrich Merz, who’s probs gonna be the next chancellor, was all, “This is a moment of reckoning for Europe.” Which is, like, super intense, right? But honestly, he kinda has a point. Like, Germany’s ready to start sending more weapons to Ukraine ASAP, even though some people are nervous about running out of their own stuff.
And then, of course, Macron had to go full main character energy and drop this bombshell about France’s nuclear deterrent. Like, he basically hinted that maybe France could, you know, share its nuclear protection with other European countries. And, like, some people were freaking out about what that even means, but Poland and the Baltic states were totally here for it. They’re like, “We love this for us.”
Meanwhile, Zelenskyy was at the summit (virtually, of course, because, like, war) and was super polite but also, like, kinda frustrated. He was all, “It’s great we are not alone,” but also, “Can we speed things up, please?” Like, apparently, some of the military aid Europe promised is still not there yet, and Ukraine literally does not have time for this.
So then the EU leaders started talking about, like, big picture stuff, and they’re all, “We should totally make our own weapons instead of waiting around for other countries to send them.” Which, like, makes sense, right? So now they’re looking at ways to boost defense production across Europe, and tbh, it sounds kinda ambitious. But also, like, necessary?
Anyway, the whole summit was a huge deal because it kinda proved that Europe is finally realizing they can’t just rely on the U.S. forever. But also, there’s, like, a ton of drama—some countries are way more committed than others, and, like, actually making all these weapons and getting them to Ukraine in time is gonna be hard.
For Ukraine, this whole thing is, like, both a relief and super stressful at the same time. Like, yay, Europe is stepping up, but also, can we hurry this along? Russia is literally not slowing down, and if Europe doesn’t get moving fast, things could get really bad. So yeah, the next few months are, like, totally crucial, and everyone is just waiting to see if the EU can actually follow through on all these big promises.
XOXO,
Valley Girl News
Photo from Omar Havana/AP
