Liberation: Three days that changed the world – European leaders began to take action following the Munich Conference.

The goal of the Paris summit on Ukraine, urgently convened by President Emmanuel Macron for Monday, February 17, is to “prevent the signing of a peace agreement between the US and Russia without the involvement of Europeans and Ukrainians, as well as to expedite military rearmament.”

Source. This is reported by the French publication Libération, which is referenced by RFI.

It is noted that the meeting will have an informal nature.

Participants in the summit will include: German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. The presence of the heads of government of Spain, Poland, the Netherlands, and Denmark is also expected. The meeting will be attended by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.

The publication states that on Sunday “hundreds of representatives from the European diplomatic and military elite left the snowy capital of Bavaria feeling that they had witnessed three days that turned the world upside down. Or at least their world – one where transatlantic relations seemed an unshakable foundation of the international order since World War II, but which [this world] now suddenly appears deeply fractured.”

“The European Union does not intend to become a pawn in someone else's game, which Trump has unfolded in recent days,” writes Libération. “The US president not only decided to conclude a ‘peace agreement’ regarding Ukraine directly with Russian President Putin, without involving either the Ukrainians or Europeans in the negotiations, although these negotiations will determine the future security architecture in Europe, but also declared that NATO is in a state of ‘brain death.’ He announced to them [Europe] a trade war that is just beginning, and does not hide his desire to destabilize their democracies through his Vice President, JD Vance, or Elon Musk.”

Libération notes that “the brutality of Trump's actions, contrary to expectations, did not destroy but rather strengthened European unity.”

The newspaper writes that on Friday, at a meeting of ambassadors from the 27 EU countries at the EU, it was decided to continue the strict application of European regulatory rules for digital platforms. This specifically concerns the Digital Services Act, which, despite US threats, will also apply to Elon Musk's social network X.

Libération points out that European defense and the acceleration of processes in the military industry have become the second key topic of the informal summit in Paris. EC President Ursula von der Leyen has already expressed readiness to reform the Stability Pact, which will allow European countries to increase their military expenditures.

Libération also reports that Friedrich Merz, who has a high chance of becoming Chancellor of Germany after the elections on February 23, has expressed readiness to consider the possibility of a pan-European loan to finance the EU’s rearmament.

The publication notes that Europeans are concerned not only about the speed of events but also about the “lack of visibility of an American plan regarding Ukraine – if such a plan even exists.”

In the corridors of the Munich conference, Trump's team style was compared to military tactics: flood the zone, confuse the tracks, cover everything with carpet bombing.

Libération also quotes one of the high-ranking European diplomats: “Everything depends on the future of European democracies. If right-wing populists come to power in several countries tomorrow, it will be the end of the Union. This should be viewed in the context of the American assault on our democracies.”

Background. Recall: Olaf Scholz sharply criticized Vance and mocked the absence of the topic of the war in Ukraine in his speech. It was expected that Vance would talk about possible negotiations, but the US Vice President hardly mentioned Russia or Ukraine in his address.

As reported, JD Vance criticized Romania in Munich for canceling the election results, in which a pro-Russian candidate won. He stated that “the threat does not come from Russia or China, but from within Europe itself,” which does not respect freedom of speech.