AARHUS, Denmark (AP) \u2014 In the windswept gardens of a Danish chateau, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and some of Ukraine\u2019s main European backers weighed options on Thursday for filling the gap after the Trump administration paused weapons shipments to his country.<\/p>\n
The U.S. move<\/a> affects high-demand munitions, including Patriot missiles, the AIM-7 Sparrow air-to-air missile and shorter-range Stinger missiles. They are needed to counter incoming missiles, bring down Russian aircraft or counter drone attacks.<\/p>\n But they are in short supply, none are cheap, and some simply can\u2019t be sourced elsewhere.<\/p>\n \u201cWe count on the continuation of American support because there are some items which Europe \u2026 doesn\u2019t have for today,\u201d Zelenskyy told reporters in Aarhus, Denmark, as a military helicopter hovered above, and security personnel watched nearby woods.<\/p>\n Chief among them: Patriot missile systems<\/a> and interceptors. \u201cThis is crucial,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Russia\u2019s new push<\/a> to capture more territory has put Ukraine\u2019s defenses under severe strain, with the war now in its fourth year. Russian missiles and drones are battering Ukrainian cities<\/a>. U.S.-led efforts to find a peace settlement<\/a> have stalled.<\/p>\n It\u2019s still unclear even to Zelenskyy what the White House intends for the weapons shipments. \u201cI hope that maybe tomorrow, or close days, these days, I will speak about it with President (Donald) Trump,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Europe\u2019s reason to act<\/p>\n Many in the European Union are keen to step up. They see Russia\u2019s invasion as a threat to their own security. Officials have warned that President Vladimir Putin could try to test Europe\u2019s defenses<\/a> in 3-5 years.<\/p>\n \u201cAll of us hope that the U.S. will continue the support for Ukraine,\u201d Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said, flanking Zelenskyy. \u201cBut if there are any gaps, then I personally believe that we should be willing to fill in.\u201d<\/p>\n Denmark \u2013 a key Ukraine backer \u2013 has just taken over the EU presidency<\/a> for six months.<\/p>\n \u201cThe war in Ukraine has never only been about Ukraine. This is a war about the future of Europe,\u201d she said. Most EU countries are members of NATO, which has just agreed<\/a> that allies should invest 5% of the gross domestic product in defense.<\/p>\n Russia is the chief threat that warrants such spending, although Trump did cajole the Europeans and Canada into agreeing the figure, which will require them to spend tens of billions of dollars more over the next decade.<\/p>\n Sourcing defense funds<\/p>\n Since the Trump administration warned that its security priorities lie elsewhere and that Europe must fend for itself, the European Commission\u2019s priority has been to find extra money.<\/p>\n Commission President Ursula von der Leyen launched the EU\u2019s big funding gun<\/a> with 150 billion euros ($176 billion) that countries, including Ukraine, can use to make joint purchases of priority weapons.<\/p>\n The EU\u2019s executive branch has also loosened the rules on countries running up debt if they use the money for defense purposes. It hopes that hundreds of billions of extra euros could be made available, if members use the opportunity to spend more.<\/p>\n Then there are sanctions against Russia. EU nations are working on yet another raft of measures<\/a>, but they are getting harder to agree on. It now falls to Denmark to try to chaperone the latest sanctions through.<\/p>\n \u201cRussia is on the brink of recession,\u201d noted von der Leyen, standing to Zelenskyy\u2019s right. \u201cRussia\u2019s overheated war economy is coming to its limits. So for us, it is important to increase the pressure so that (Putin) comes to the negotiation table.\u201d<\/p>\n Investing in Ukraine, the Danish way<\/p>\n Frederiksen\u2019s government has led the way in investing in Ukraine\u2019s defense industry, which can produce arms and ammunition more quickly and cheaply than elsewhere in Europe. She believes it\u2019s the most effective way to help.<\/p>\n She also recently invited Ukrainian companies to set up shop on safer ground in Denmark, and the first companies could start production there in September. Danish officials are urging their European partners to follow suit.<\/p>\n Ukraine estimates that around 40% of its defense industrial capacity could be capitalized on if more European money were spent there.<\/p>\n Security and EU membership<\/p>\n Frederiksen said that helping Ukraine to join the EU is a security priority, but Hungary stands in the way. Prime Minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n insists that Ukraine should remain a buffer zone<\/a> between Russia and NATO countries. <\/p>\n EU membership is meant to be a merit-based process, and Denmark has said that \u201call political and practical means\u201d will be used to persuade Hungary \u2014 a small EU country and the only one standing in Ukraine\u2019s way \u2014 to lift its veto.<\/p>\n Zelenskyy said Thursday that Ukraine has made significant progress in aligning with the EU\u2019s rules despite the war, and called for the first phase of membership negotiations to begin as soon as possible.<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes it\u2019s just difficult to be together in one building, all the government (and) the parliamentarians because of the attacks,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n Less palatable options<\/p>\n Calls are mounting for the Europeans to use Russian assets that they froze after the full-scale invasion in 2022 to help Ukraine. At the end of March, around 195 billion euros ($320 billion) worth \u2013 the bulk of the assets \u2013 was being held by Belgian clearing house Euroclear.<\/p>\n The interest earned on those assets is being used to fund a $50 billion scheme set up by the Group of Seven powers to keep Ukraine\u2019s economy afloat.<\/p>\n