Zelensky Asks Europe to Form Its Own Army

Saying that Russia is preparing for more war instead of peace talks and that US support of threatened allies is no longer a certainty, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday called for the creation of an "armed forces of Europe." Addressing the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky said his nation's three-year war with Russia shows the need for a united force and demonstrates that the foundation for it is in place, the Hill reports. "Europe has to become self-sufficient, united by common strengths," he said. "Let's be honest now, we can't rule out the possibility that America might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it."

Other leaders, including French President Emmanuel Macron, have proposed a European army to reduce reliance on the US. On Saturday, though, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas discounted the idea, per the BBC. Zelensky said Europe should develop a foreign policy of its own, as well, per CNN. "The old days are over—when America supported Europe just because it always had," he said. The Trump administration has gone back and forth over whether Ukraine will be included in peace talks involving the US and Russia, and it has not been supportive of Ukraine joining NATO.

Zelensky said Saturday that he won't drop his NATO lobbying. If the alliance shuts out Ukraine, he said his nation's army would need to double in size, per NBC News. Part of his reasoning for a European army is that a united front would send a message to the US. "Europe just needs to come together and start acting in a way that no one can say 'no' to Europe, boss it around, or treat it like a pushover," he said, per Politico Europe. (More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)