European Officials Step Out Against US Arms to Ukraine, Warn of Escalation

Foreign Ministry officials from across the European Union spoke out against Washington's proposed provision of weaponry to Kiev on Monday.

The officials' statements echoed those of Germany and France, the union's political and economic powerbrokers, whose officials noted over the weekend that the provision of arms would exacerbate the situation and provoke Russia.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel noted that "the progress Ukraine needs won’t be achieved with more weapons.” She noted that in her view, "there is no way to win this militarily  – that’s the bitter truth," and that "the international community has to think of a different approach."

In meetings with the Ukrainian and Russian leadership last week, Merkel and French President Francois Hollande presented a plan for peace in Eastern Ukraine, involving a 50-70 kilometer demilitarized zone, along with autonomy for the area, Hollande told French television on Saturday.

On Sunday and Monday, the foreign ministries of Britain, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden also came out against weapons deliveries, voicing concern over the economic stability of Ukraine, as well as the economic costs to the EU itself.  Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo pointed out that sanctions and countersanctions have cost the EU €21 billion worth of lost exports to date. Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders voiced his hopes that the Franco-German peace consultations will "result in success this week, in the aim of stabilizing Ukraine."

Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz told reporters on Monday that weapons act as "a fire accelerant and would contribute to a further escalation," noting that "weapon deliveries cannot be an option." Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak echoed the Austrian official's comments, noting that "sending arms to one party inevitably pushes the other party to get more arms from other suppliers."

Going against the current of his colleagues' opinion, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said on Monday that sending weapons to the country would be a "logical move," and that attempts to resolve the conflict diplomatically "can't last forever." The minister noted that "no one wants war, but…we cannot trust a single word [from the] Russian leadership." He added that Russia is already providing the independence militia with "sophisticated and heavy weapons," charges which the Russian Foreign Ministry has repeatedly denied. In any case, Linkevicius noted that the US arms debate was not something he had the power to challenge, saying "who am I not to support it."

Chancellor Merkel is set to discuss the situation in Ukraine with US President Barack Obama in Washington on Monday.

The next talks on Ukrainian reconciliation in the so-called Normandy format, including the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France, are expected to take place on February 11 in Minsk. The talks have been conducted on several occasions to date, but have not yet resulted in a long-term truce in eastern Ukraine.

The leaders of the 27 countries of the EU are expected to discuss the situation in Ukraine on Thursday.