While forty Western countries are committed to a register of war damage caused by the Russian invasion, Hungary refuses the release of a new tranche of 500 million euros from the European Peace Facility to reimburse weapons provided by the EU to Ukraine, Budapest and several delegations in Brussels said Wednesday. The Ukrainian president was waiting for the visit of a Chinese emissary in the early afternoon... Le Figaro takes stock of the situation of the war in Ukraine this Wednesday, May 17.
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"Political settlement of the conflict"
A Chinese envoy sent by Beijing to discuss a "political settlement" of the conflict is Wednesday in Kiev, a visit expected by Volodymyr Zelensky, with new promises of Western weapons, to see China use its influence on Russia. "A meeting is possible in the afternoon" between the Ukrainian president and Li Hui, a senior Ukrainian official told AFP on condition of anonymity. This exchange would be a first between President Zelensky – who encourages Beijing to weigh on Vladimir Putin – and a senior Chinese official, since the beginning of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022. According to Beijing, Li Hui, special representative for Eurasian affairs and former Chinese ambassador to Moscow, is supposed to discuss the "political settlement" of the Ukrainian conflict during a European tour that will also lead him through Poland, France, Germany and Russia.
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Li Hui with Russian Prime Minister Medvedev in Moscow, May 15, 2023. RIA Novosti / REUTERS
China, Moscow's close partner, has never publicly condemned the Russian invasion. Beijing proposed a 12-point plan to end the war in February, viewed with skepticism by the West, and its President Xi Jinping visited Moscow in March, giving symbolic support to Vladimir Putin in the face of the West. "At the end of the month, (Hui) will come to us," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko was quoted as saying by TASS news agency on Tuesday evening, without giving a specific date at this stage. "The idea is to let these countries know about China's proposals for a settlement policy in Ukraine and hear the views and comments of relevant interlocutors," he said.
Europe and G7 countries launch Russia-caused damage register
The United States, Japan, Canada and almost all European countries signed on Wednesday a register of war damage caused by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a prelude to demands for reparations and lawsuits against Moscow, announced the Council of Europe meeting in Iceland. Launched Tuesday on the occasion of a summit of heads of state and government of the pan-European organization, this census is a first step in view of the demands for reparations addressed to Moscow for the thousands of victims and billions of euros of destruction.
Participants at the 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe, pose for the family photo at the Harpa Concert Hall in Reykjavik, Iceland, May 16, 2023. JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP
At Wednesday morning's score, "we have about 40 member states that have signed, and all G7 countries on three continents," Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejcinovic Buric said on the second day of the summit. "We wanted victim-centred justice," said the head of the legal body, best known for its European Court of Human Rights, welcoming a "necessary and urgent first step". The initiative, led by the Icelandic presidency of the organization, aims to show that the case of "justice for Ukraine" is advancing, while the prospect of a possible special tribunal for war crimes committed during the invasion remains remote. The European Union has also signed in addition to most of its members, including the France. One EU member country, Bulgaria, as well as Switzerland and Andorra, are finalising their internal procedures to sign in turn, according to the Council of Europe.
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German Chancellor Olaf Scholz welcomed the creation of the register, but stressed that "it does not settle the issue of payment of damages". Europe, which seeks to use the fruits of tens of billions of frozen Russian funds to finance Ukraine's reconstruction, could also use them for war damage, he said. Kyiv warmly welcomed the establishment of this register, which will be based in The Hague (Netherlands) like the International Criminal Court (ICC). The latter, initially created for three years, must receive complaints from victims and identify all human or material damage. "It paves the way for a broad international compensation mechanism for the victims of Russian aggression," the Council of Europe said in a statement. "It's important to get the message across to people who have damage that we don't forget them, and that we will follow up," Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said. The summit, which brings together 46 European countries, "clearly shows that Putin has failed," according to Olaf Scholz.
Budapest blocks reimbursement of EU arms to Kiev
Hungary refuses to release a new tranche of 500 million euros from the European Peace Facility to reimburse arms supplied by the EU to Ukraine, Budapest and several delegations in Brussels said on Wednesday. The Hungarian government confirmed that it had not approved the disbursement of this new envelope because "it does not agree that the European Union, which has other instruments, should use the European Peace Facility exclusively for Ukraine".
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This would leave sufficient resources to promote EU interests in other regions (e.g. Balkans, Sahel, North Africa)," he said. Budapest maintained this objection during meetings held on Tuesday and Wednesday to prepare for the meeting of EU foreign ministers on 22 May in Brussels, several delegations confirmed on Wednesday. Hungary is not blocking the supply of arms and ammunition demanded by the Ukrainian armed forces to repel the Russian army. But it prevents their reimbursement to member states, it was said. Unanimity is required to approve the use of European Peace Facility (EFF) funds, whose initial allocation of €5.7 billion for the period 2021-27 was increased by €2 billion in May.
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The Facility is used to reimburse Member States 40% of the value of armaments delivered to Ukraine and to train Ukrainian military personnel. It is supplemented by contributions from Member States and 66% of its funding is provided by Germany, France Italy and Spain. An agreement in principle has been reached to allocate new funding of 3.5 billion euros to supplement the Facility, diplomats said. The halt to reimbursements risks dissuading some member states from continuing arms supplies to Ukraine at a time when Kiev is preparing a counter-offensive and demanding more modern armaments, including fighter jets and long-range strike capabilities. Hungary has never blocked the use of the VET to which it contributes financially, even though it does not supply arms or ammunition to Ukraine, like Austria and Ireland.
F-16 delivery: London and Berlin return the ball to Washington
The British and German defense ministers said Wednesday in Berlin that it was up to "the White House" to decide on a possible delivery to Kiev of F-16 fighter jets. "We don't have an F-16 and we're not going to deliver Typhoon (aircraft) but we can obviously contribute to training and support, within the limits of the fact that we don't have F-16 pilots," British Minister Ben Wallace said in Berlin at a joint press conference with his German counterpart Boris Pistorius.
British and German defense ministers in Berlin, May 17, 2023. TOBIAS SCHWARZ / AFP
Wallace was asked about the "international coalition" that London has proposed to build to deliver Western-tech fighter jets to Ukraine. He added that this coalition was "political support", a "signal to Russia that we have no objection in principle to providing Ukraine with the capabilities it needs". Volodymyr Zelensky has been asking his Western allies for months to provide him with aircraft that would allow the Ukrainian army to strike deep Russian troops, without constituting a miracle solution in the conflict.
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We cannot play an active role in such an alliance, in such a coalition, because we have neither the training capabilities, nor the skills, nor the aircraft," Pistorius said. "To my knowledge, it depends on the White House to decide whether the F-16 fighter jets can be delivered," he said, arguing that this is "not an issue that will be settled in Berlin." "There are no demands on us" on this subject of fighter jets, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz had already said Wednesday at the Council of Europe summit in Reykjavik. The German government is focusing on tanks, ammunition, air defense and the establishment of "a system of repairs," the German leader said. "Germany could, however, provide military airports for training on F-16 fighter jets, carried out by pilots from other countries," proposed Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann, president (FDP) of the defense committee in the Bundestag.
