Ukraine 17 – Gaza 0. The future head of European diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, does not hide her obsession with Russia. The anti-Putin ‘hawk’ whom the leaders of the 27 elected as a replacement for Josep Borrell makes clear what her foreign policy priorities are in the written responses that the Estonian has sent to the European Parliament as part of the process of election, which will culminate with an oral exam the second week of November and the ratification of the entire College of Commissioners in the plenary session to be held at the end of that month. And the war in Ukraine will, by and large, have a predominant attention during her mandate as high representative of the EU.
Kallas largely assumes that this position comes from his own background. “European security is deeply personal to me as a native of a country that has long told others that Russia’s imperialist dream never died. But I firmly believe that each country must pitch in, regardless of its geographic proximity to hostile neighbors. I pushed for an increase in Estonia’s defense spending above 3% of GDP just one year after the Russian invasion, but I also ensured that Estonia became proportionately one of Ukraine’s largest donors. “I wanted Estonia to lead by example,” the former Estonian prime minister responds to the first question in which the European Parliament asks her what personal qualities make her suitable for the position.
And that primacy of the war in Ukraine over other conflicts is clear throughout the 21-page document. “My short-term priority must be to address pressing global concerns: Russia’s war against Ukraine and strengthening the security and defense of the EU,” he answers in the specific section on his contribution to foreign policy. “Our response to Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine tells the world who we are and what values we stand for. Apart from it being morally the right thing to do, I also believe that supporting Ukraine – politically, economically and militarily – for as long as it takes to win this war is how the EU can be truly credible on the world stage with a foreign and security policy. more strategic, assertive, united and focused on human rights,” adds Kallas. “Part of this process is to ensure that justice is done for all victims of war crimes committed and that Russia pays for the damage it has caused,” he says.
In total, Kallas mentions Russia 17 times while the conflict in the Middle East, where more than 43,000 people have already died, is mentioned four times (three of them in the same paragraph). There is no allusion to Israel, which EU leaders have already pointed out for violating international law (although it was for the attacks on the UN blue helmets and not for the massacre of the Palestinian population), nor to the situation in the Gaza Strip or the extension of the attacks on Lebanon.
Beyond the number of mentions, the tone is radically different when it comes to the conflict in the Middle East compared to its clear position regarding the war in Ukraine. “While Russia’s war against Ukraine threatens the integrity of the European Union, the indirect effect of the crisis in the Middle East following the terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023 is undeniable, both in terms of the escalation of the conflict in Middle East as in the highest level of anti-Semitism seen in Europe since the Holocaust,” begins the liberal policy, which at all times avoids referring to the massacre of the Palestinian civilian population.
“The EU must continue to lead humanitarian efforts, working with all actors to support the search for a just and comprehensive peace in the region, focusing on promoting the two-state solution and strengthening partnerships with the main stakeholders in the region”, continues the candidate for high representative, who is committed to “presenting a global EU-Middle East strategy” with the help of the commissioner for the Mediterranean and to “forge common EU positions”, which is deeply divided regarding the conflict in the Middle East due to the alignment of many capitals with Israel.
Equidistance with Israel
Kallas’s equidistance with the conflict in the Middle East clashes with the position that Borrell has maintained this year. The high representative was the first to warn of the violations of international law that the siege of the Gaza Strip entailed, despite the fact that the 27 have not been able to agree on this common position until the UN troops were attacked. deployed in Lebanon. The socialist, who has been one of the most didactic voices on this issue in the community club, also advocated calling for a ceasefire at a time when countries like Germany were dragging their feet.
“Not everyone thinks it, but I believe that one horror does not justify another horror,” he said this Tuesday in a speech at the Italian University of Urbino Carlo Bo, which awarded him an honorary doctorate. “The existential question is whether the destruction of Gaza […] “It is justified by the right to defense,” added Borrell, who made it clear that he thinks not. In the final stretch of his mandate, he is making the last attempts to mobilize the EU and punish Benjamin Netanyahu’s government with sanctions on ministers for “encouraging war crimes” against the Palestinian population and forcing a debate on the violation of international law in the framework of the review of the trade agreement that Spain and Ireland have demanded and that the rest of the partners have received coldly.
In her cover letter, Kallas presents herself as a consensus-maker, but it remains to be seen if she assumes any of the theses of the governments, such as that of Pedro Sánchez, the Irish or the Belgian, which ask the EU for a more ambitious position regarding the massacre in Gaza, which the future head of European diplomacy ignores, at least for now.
Regarding the rest of the geopolitical situation, Kallas tiptoes around other challenges that the EU has, such as China or the United States (in this case when the old continent holds its breath for a possible return to the White House of Donald Trump).
“My priority in relations with China will be to safeguard the geopolitical and economic security of the EU, working with the responsible colleagues of the College of Commissioners and with the EU Member States,” explains Kallas, which he ranks among the “most pressing challenges.” Beijing’s support for Moscow and “the structural imbalances between the EU and China” at a time when the trade war has become entrenched.
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