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"EU enlargement, antidote to Russian imperialism"/ Kallas in Munich: Montenegro and Albania have been actively working on reforms

2026-02-15 14:12:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

"EU enlargement, antidote to Russian imperialism"/ Kallas in Munich:

The European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, assessed that Russia is no longer a superpower, having barely made progress on the front lines compared to 2014. She said that EU enlargement is an antidote to "Russian imperialism."

“Today Russia is weakened, its economy is in dire straits, it is cut off from the European energy market, and its citizens are fleeing. The biggest threat is that it could gain more at the negotiating table than on the battlefield ,” Kallas said. She warned that “Russia’s maximalist conditions cannot be met with a minimal response.”

She also presented the EU's principles for achieving peace in Ukraine: if the Ukrainian army is limited, the Russian one must also be limited, Russia must pay war damages, there is no amnesty for war crimes, and the return of abducted Ukrainian children must be enabled.

"This is the minimum if peace is truly Russia's goal. Since we suspect it is not, Europe is arming itself together with its partners," she said.

Kallas warned that the occupation of Donbas is not Russia's ultimate goal. She stressed that Moscow aims to weaken economies through cyberattacks, jamming satellites, sabotaging undersea cables, destroying alliances with disinformation, using the energy sector as a tool of pressure and threatening with nuclear weapons.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the European bloc must ensure stability in its neighborhood, to the east and south, adding that enlargement is “an antidote to Russian imperialism.” According to her, enlargement is a geopolitical choice that the EU must support.

Kallas stressed that the European Union remains an attractive forum and that the "waiting list" for membership is expanding.

"Citizens still want to join our bloc, and not just Europeans. When I was in Canada last year, I was told that more than 40 percent of Canadians are interested in joining the EU. I only hope that those who have been waiting for a long time will not have to wait even longer ," Kallas said during a speech at the Munich Security Conference, rejecting claims that Europe is facing the extinction of civilization.

Asked about the possibility of Ukraine's rapid accession to the EU, and what is being discussed in Brussels circles, she admitted that there is still no clear positive answer to this issue.

The idea of ??accelerated membership implies Ukraine's entry into the European bloc earlier, with some restrictions, including voting rights, while full membership would require meeting all standards and a unanimous decision by member states.

Kaja Kallas considers that this would not discourage countries that have been waiting for a long time, especially in the Western Balkans.

"We [in Estonia] also had to carry out numerous reforms to join the EU, but the geopolitical situation was decisive. It is perhaps not realistic to say that everyone should join at the same time, because there are small countries like Montenegro and Albania that have been waiting for a long time and are actively working on reforms. If we want changes, we need to make decisions faster. It cannot be that the candidates carry out their tasks, and then we tell them that we are not ready to accept them," Kallas said in Munich.

The Munich Security Conference ends on February 15 after a three-day session. It is one of the world's most important geopolitical meetings, bringing together leaders and senior officials. Organizers said this year's edition was the largest yet, with more than 1,000 delegates, including about 50 prime ministers and foreign ministers. The conference took place at a time of global tensions, including the war in Ukraine, tensions over Iran and discussions on the future of NATO and the transatlantic alliance. /REL