A veritable diplomatic marathon is taking place this Thursday in Brussels.
A month after the start of the Russian invasion, the Heads of State and Government, gathered this morning on behalf of NATO, began a meeting of the G7 at the start of the afternoon, which was itself followed later during the day, of a summit of the European Union.
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These three summits, according to the White House, are primarily intended to consolidate the arsenal of sanctions already taken, avoid attempts to circumvent Moscow, and strengthen NATO's position in Eastern Europe over the long term. .
Each hosts a videoconference intervention by Volodymyr Zelensky, live from kyiv.
Strengthen Alliance defenses on the eastern flank
The countries of the Alliance have decided to extend the mandate of Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg at the head of the Alliance until September 30, 2023 because of the war in Ukraine, announced the latter on Twitter.
During a press conference following the summit, the Secretary General announced a reinforcement of NATO's defense system on its eastern flank: four new battlegroups in Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Slovakia.
The organization will also equip its own forces, as well as those of Ukraine, against chemical, biological and nuclear threats.
“
It could be detection, equipment, protection and medical support, as well as training in contamination and crisis management
,” said Jens Stoltenberg.
Westerners want to prevent Russia from using its gold
The White House announced in a statement on Thursday that the G7 and European Union countries will sanction any transaction involving Russia's gold reserves, to prevent Moscow from circumventing the financial isolation measures taken by the Westerners.
"We want to close off any possibility for Russia to use its gold to support its currency
", the rouble, explained a senior American official.
He stressed, during an exchange with the press, that Moscow had a "
considerable
" stock of gold, and that the precious metal represented some 20% of Russia's total reserves.
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The same source also assured that the G7 countries were “
united
” in considering that “
international organizations and multilateral bodies should not continue their activities with Russia as if nothing had happened
”.
Gas, a priority for the EU
For its part, the European Union intends to reduce its dependence on Russian gas because of the war in Ukraine and Western sanctions against Russia.
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who is due to meet US President Joe Biden in Brussels on Friday, expressed her desire to obtain a commitment from the United States on this occasion on additional LNG supplies for the next two winters.
