Neutrality clause included in EU-Ukraine security pledge
The clause was added at the insistence of Maltese, Irish and Austrian diplomats
Malta, Ireland and Austria, the EU’s three neutral member states, successfully inserted a clause protecting their neutrality in an EU pledge to offer “future security commitments” to Ukraine in the war against Russia.
The pledge, presented at a European Council summit in Brussels on Thursday, will see the EU continue to provide funds for weapons and supplies through the European Peace Facility, according to a report in the Financial Times.
The agreement will also offer more training for Ukrainian troops and long-term financing for military supplies and intelligence.
The agreement states that “the European Union and member states stand ready to contribute, together with partners, to future security commitments to Ukraine, which will help Ukraine defend itself in the long term, deter acts of aggression and resist destabilisation efforts”.
Diplomats from Malta, Ireland and Austria successfully pushed to include a clause within the agreement which says that "commitments will be taken in full respect of the security and defence policy of certain Member States and taking into account the security and defence interests of all Member States", thereby allowing the three states to invoke their neutrality where necessary.
Diplomats who spoke to Times of Malta said that there was a genuine understanding of the need for this clause to be included, to cater for the different constitutional neutrality clauses across the different member states forming part of the EU.
While the nature of activities that Malta will be contributing to through this agreement is unclear, diplomats say that it is likely to be in line with Malta’s other commitments to the European Peace Facility which involves providing non-lethal support such as humanitarian assistance.
According to a report in the Irish Times, diplomats had initially attempted to soften the clause further by referring to “political and security commitments”, but other EU countries stood firm.
Insiders say that diplomats from the three neutral states agreed not to push the matter further, understanding the need for the EU to present a united front in support of Ukraine and believing that the final text reflects their constitutional neutrality.
The summit was attended by Prime Minister Robert Abela.
According to a government statement, Abela discussed several issues, including the quicker adoption of the EU’s updated pharmaceutical legislation, which would increase access to medicines, and the need to diversify Europe’s energy provision.