Our Policy Recommendations

The European Movement International condemns and deplores Putin’s aggression against Ukraine. This indiscriminate, unprovoked use of force by the regime in the Kremlin against an independent country is illegal and repudiates the values of peace, freedom and democracy that underpin the European ideals.

We call on Putin’s regime to cease all military actions, withdraw its forces and use diplomatic and non-violent means to pursue its objectives. We strongly support the right of all people to live in peace and harmony. People in Ukraine and every other state must be able to freely choose their political and economic system, and relations in the region and internationally. We stand with the Ukrainian government and express solidarity with the people of Ukraine.

As events continue to unfold, we call upon the European Union to:

• Provide humanitarian and financial assistance to Ukraine and pursue the immediate cessation of hostilities and a peaceful resolution to the conflict;
• Ensure stronger protection and support for conflict-affected residents in Ukraine and grant asylum to all refugees arriving in Europe from Ukraine, irrespective of their nationality or ethnic background;
• Step up its military support to Ukraine and the provision of defensive weapons, while significantly increasing defence spending and investment in its defence capabilities through already existing initiatives such as the European Peace Facility (EPF) and the European Defence Fund (EDF);
• Invoke the mutual defence clause as enshrined in Article 42.7 of the Treaty on the European Union in the event of a Russian aggression into the territory of one of its neighbouring EU Member States;
• Seize this moment of unity and common solidarity to develop a fully-fledged European Defence Union (EDU) through the harmonisation of European armed forces under full control of national and EU parliaments to ensure peace on the European continent and in Ukraine;
• Proceed with urgency towards the establishment of a common migration and asylum policy, starting from the reform of the Dublin Regulation stuck in Council since 2017;
• Shift from unanimity to qualified majority voting (QMV) in the Council for policy areas of foreign and security policy to allow the EU to shoulder international responsibilities more effectively;
• Strengthen the EU’s strategic autonomy by decoupling its energy needs from regimes that violate the EU’s fundamental values and by pursuing the implementation of the Green Deal towards climate neutrality;
• Include fossil fuels in sanctions against Russia and in its exclusion from SWIFT;
• Start accession talks with Ukraine, in compliance with the Copenhagen membership criteria.