Caroline de Gruyter
One photo captures it all: European leaders visiting Kyiv on the third anniversary of the Russian invasion, sitting in a close circle with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The light is warm, dimmed. All sit on the edge of their chairs, leaning forward, their heads closely together, listening to Zelensky. No one looks depressed or anxious; on the contrary, it is clear they share a common mission. All look focused on the future. In short, they look like family.
Almost all of the pictured leaders were from Northern Europe and the Baltic countries, also known as NB8—the Nordic-Baltic Eight. In Kyiv, they were joined by the European Commission president and the Canadian and Spanish prime ministers.
It was a geopolitical statement—one that was more remarkable for being made by Nordic-Baltic states. For decades, most Nordic policymakers considered Europe to be not much more than a market. More often than not, they were known for putting a brake on integration, rather than furthering it. As for the Baltic states, until Russia’s invasion in Ukraine they were often referred to as the “new countries,” even though all three—Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania—joined both NATO and the European Union in 2004.
No comments:
Post a Comment