Borders cannot be changed by force, von der Leyen says ahead of White House meeting

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has insisted that international borders cannot be changed by force, and that Ukraine should have strong security guarantees without any limitations on its armed forces – “Ukraine must become a steel porcupine, undigestible for potential invaders,” she said on 17 August.

Von der Leyen was speaking after a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Brussels before travelling to Washington for a meeting on Monday with US President Donald Trump, where Zelensky will be joined by the European Commission President as well as the leaders of France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Finland and Italy.

Von der Leyen insisted on the need for strong security guarantees to protect both Ukraine and Europe’s vital security interests. “Ukraine must be able to uphold its sovereignty and its territorial integrity,” she said, adding: “We welcome President Trump’s willingness to contribute to Article 5-like security guarantees for Ukraine. And the Coalition of the Willing, including the European Union, is ready to do its share.”

At the same time, she added, “we continue to support Ukraine’s path to its membership in the European Union. This in itself is also a security guarantee.”

With regard to any territorial questions in Ukraine, von der Leyen said the EU’s position was clear: “International borders cannot be changed by force. These are decisions to be made by Ukraine and Ukraine alone, and these decisions cannot be taken without Ukraine at the table.”

She added that as long as the bloodshed in Ukraine continued, Europe would maintain diplomatic and, in particular, economic pressure on Russia. “We will continue to strengthen sanctions. We have adopted 18 packages so far, and we are advancing preparation for the 19th. This package will be forthcoming in early September. We know that sanctions are effective, we have already put Russia’s immobilised assets to work for the benefit of Ukraine, and we will continue to put pressure on Russia’s war economy to bring President Putin to the negotiation table.”

“These are challenging times,” she concluded. “Only Ukraine can choose its own destiny, but Ukraine can always count on Europe.”

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