In a plenary debate in Strasbourg on the proposed Ukraine peace plan of US President Donald Trump and the EU’s role in it, ECR Foreign Affairs Coordinator Adam Bielan (PiS, Poland) sharply criticised the Union’s lack of initiative and its inconsistent behaviour.

“It is impossible not to question the results of all the engagements of European leaders. Why is European diplomacy acting like a reviewer who only responds to the announcement of American peace proposals?” Bielan said.

He argued that Europe has failed over the past year to advance meaningful steps towards ending the war. Bielan questioned why Brussels consistently reacts to US initiatives instead of shaping its own diplomatic efforts. “Why does not Brussels formulate some propositions first? Why does it not submit constructive solutions and valid negotiating arguments to the Americans?” he asked.

Referring to figures recently presented by the Swedish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bielan highlighted the imbalance between Europe’s financial support to Ukraine and its continued imports from Russia. He noted that €187 billion was made available to Ukraine, while imports from Russia — mainly crude oil and gas — still amounted to €311 billion. “The European Union is far away from bringing peace about and many countries are still not detached from Russian interests and Russian resources,” Bielan warned.

Bielan also expressed concern about Poland’s diminishing role in recent diplomatic initiatives, despite being one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters at the start of the war. “If the Polish government is not represented at the negotiation table in Geneva, if a Polish prime minister travels separately to Kyiv, well, we are not duly represented,” Bielan stated.

He concluded by warning that Europe cannot expect changes in Russia’s behaviour as long as European money continues to flow into the Russian wartime economy. “Let us not expect that Russia will somehow react if we still have the ongoing financing of wartime economy,” he said.