Foreign Affairs Council: Press conference by High Representative Kaja Kallas

Check against delivery!

Good afternoon.

I must tell you that we have a meeting with the Indian minister at six. So, I was here before, but that is why we do not have that much room. Although I wanted to take your questions and as much as I can, but I will do try to be brief, which is not easy.

First, we had the discussion on the European Security Strategy. It is clear that the security environment is changing fast, and we cannot respond with emergency summits alone. We need a long-term policy, and that is why we had the first exchange of views with the Ministers today. So, we will take a broad view of security, linking defence, but also energy supply chains and other policy areas. Member States will shape this security strategy from the start. And today we focus the discussion on principles, scope, priorities. And an updated joint threat assessment will be also basis for the strategy.

Then we discussed the war on Ukraine. Moscow stands to gain from higher energy prices and the diversion of air defences from Ukraine to the Middle East. Ministers were clear that Ukraine remains a European top security priority and attention for Ukraine will not be allowed to fizzle out.

The same drones that are hitting Kyiv are hitting the states of the Gulf, so as Ukraine has the best drone defences, we also discussed briefly how we can put these things together: the needs for the Gulf countries, but also the needs of Ukraine and the defence sector and industry.

Russia keeps spilling the war over to its neighbours. Russia strikes on Ukrainian hydro power plant threatened to contaminate Moldova's water supply. We are supporting Moldova with equipment aid and satellite imagery.

Following the US decision to ease sanctions on Russian oil, Europe will maintain sanctions and continue to move away from Russian fossil fuels. If we want this war to end, Moscow must have less money for the war, not more. Dialling up pressure on Russia's shadow fleet is one of the best tools we have. I commend France, Belgium and also Sweden for boarding and seizing falsely flagged tankers. It is time for the gloves to come off on Russia's shadow fleet. On the EU side, the adoption of the 20th sanctions package is long overdue. We discussed how to push this forward. The same goes for the €90 billion loan.

Those who enable this war are also paying a price. Member States renewed sanctions on over 2,600 individuals, and today, Ministers also adopted new sanctions targeting those seeking to destabilise the European Union. We also listed new entities in China and Iran responsible for the cyber-attacks.

Then we had the discussion and exchange of views with the Foreign Minister of India. It was very timely, because they are also very much affected by the war in the Middle East. We discussed in broader terms the world order and also, what more we can do to keep a world order that is based on some kind of rules. And also regarding, freedom of navigation and how to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. And then we had the discussion on the Middle East. Two weeks of war have degraded Iran's military capabilities but also generated damaging security and economic shock waves. Iran is now waging war on the global economy. Ministers reaffirmed today that our focus is de-escalation and also freedom of navigation.

I also discussed with UN Secretary General Guterres and many others over the past days, how to keep the Strait of Hormuz open. Europe has no interest in an open-ended war. Following the regime's deadly crackdown in January, the EU designated the Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation, and today, we imposed additional sanctions on those responsible for the violence. This sends a message to Tehran that Iran's future cannot be built on repression. We must step up our support also to the Iranian civil society. This is not Europe's war, but Europe's interests are directly at stake. As this war expands, the EU's priority remains the protection of our citizens. We have evacuated more than 30,000 from the region, many on the flights also funded and organised by the European Union.

Now, restarting the shipments of fertilisers, food and energy through the Strait of Hormuz is another urgent priority. Today, we discussed options to better protect the shipping in the region. The EU already has naval operations in place. We have ASPIDES that plays a key role in safeguarding freedom of navigation.

There was in our discussions a clear wish to strengthen this operation. But for the time being, there was no appetite in changing the mandate of operation ASPIDES - for now. While the Strait of Hormuz is at the centre stage, the Red Sea also remains critical. The risk that Houthis get involved is real, so we must remain vigilant.

Then, in Lebanon, Hezbollah has dragged the country into a war that is not its own. The Lebanese people are paying the price for Hezbollah's attacks. But Israel's heavy-handed response has caused mass displacement, and ground invasion will further deteriorate the situation. The EU will provide €100 million in humanitarian aid to Lebanon. We also continue to support the Lebanese Armed Forces to disarm Hezbollah. The situation in Gaza and the West Bank is also worsening rapidly. Both the humanitarian situation and the political horizon are moving to the wrong direction. Progress on implementing the Gaza peace plan has been stalled, and the EU will continue to press for improved humanitarian access, de-escalation and also support for the Palestinian Authority's reforms. Next month, I will co-chair a Global Alliance meeting to address all these issues. Ministers also reviewed the progress on the Pact for the Mediterranean ahead of the leaders' meeting in Nicosia next month. We are preparing to hold the EU Mediterranean Regional Security Forum to coordinate issues such as maritime security, but also counter terrorism.

And finally, following the request from Armenia, the EU will deploy a Hybrid Rapid Response Team to help counter the threats ahead of the country's elections. Supporting democratic resilience in our neighbourhood remains essential. We will not leave Armenia to face foreign interference alone. Democracies under pressure can count on Europe. Ministers also discussed a wide range of issues, including further democratic deterioration in Georgia, but we will go into more details in the next FAC.

I will stop here so that we also have time for questions.