What is your assessment of Russia’s strategy in Ukraine and the West’s response so far?
It’s a very bloody, aggressive and dangerous war on the European continent. If you look back to February 2022, all those accusations from the Russian side – that Ukrainians were gathering forces to attack Russian or temporarily occupied territories – are simply fake.
The Kremlin started this war with an imperialistic mindset. They haven’t deviated from that strategy since then; in fact, they’ve been very consistent. Militarily, they can’t achieve a major breakthrough, which is why they’re using this strategy of slow advance – a creeping military operation -, paying an enormous price in human lives, equipment, resources and ammunition. This is only possible because they enjoy the “privilege” of autocratic rule.
In a democracy, after so many losses, you’d see mass discontent and protests in any capital. But not in the Russian Federation – the civil society there is completely nonexistent. When it comes to peace negotiations, the role of the United States is critical. However, I don’t think the current administration has handled Russia well so far. Just look at Steve Witkoff; he doesn’t even bring his own interpreter to the Kremlin. Unfortunately, the Russian narrative prevails.
Do you see any lessons learned in the West when it comes to dealing with Russia? It seems the current US administration is slowly changing its course..
I see that the Trump administration is learning from its past mistakes. I’m not sure if that comes from President Trump personally or from his team, but they seem to realise that they can’t achieve much this way.
Putin is always bringing his own game plan – how many times have we heard the proposal for a 30-day ceasefire? Why is Russia given the right to set the initiative and to continue the war on its own terms? This is where I think the West is underperforming. We are very good at rhetoric: statements, declarations and even “ultimatums” – but what is missing is real implementation. And as long as that continues, the Kremlin will keep gaining ground.
“We are very good at rhetoric: statements, declarations and even “ultimatums” – but what is missing is real implementation.”
How has Europe’s perception of the war evolved since 2022?
It took at least two years of war for Europe to realise that this is an existential threat – not only for Ukraine, but for Europe itself. Russian propagandists are openly instructed to threaten the West. Look at Medvedev, he has a free hand and is very vocal in that regard. For Russia, even the Balkans are part of the so-called ‘Russian world’ vision. That doesn’t necessarily mean Russian soldiers present on the ground, but it does mean a strong influence – you follow our words and do as we wish. Essentially, they are viewing European states as a sort of ‘vassal states’. Europe is finally recognising that the concept of cooperating, accommodating or even trying to change Russia for the better with time has failed.
Russia doesn’t have the intention to change. It’s simply using all those cooperation projects – Nord Stream, visa-free regime, and so on – to increase and build its influence in Europe. How many sleeping agents do we still have in Europe? How many political representatives in Europe are on the payroll of the Russian Federation? God only knows.
What kind of European defence policy is needed now?
We need a serious, comprehensive, and effective security and defence policy. Right now, we are set to approve key documents like the European Defense Industry Support Program, with 150 billion euros allocated, plus additional national and private funds.
European armies must be integrated and have a joint threat assessment. So we don’t have a situation where one country’s military leadership says, “the threat is here”, while another says, “no, we don’t see any threat.” We have to read and act on the situation jointly, and most importantly, we need to have the capacity to do so.
How would you comment on the leaders of Serbia and Slovakia who went to Moscow to attend the Moscow Victory Day Parade?
It is shameful that two European representatives – Vucic and Fico were at the Red Square, the symbol of military aggression against Ukraine now. It’s symbolic, yes, but it also illustrates deep disagreements about how we interpret the situation.
Serbia’s alignment with the European foreign and security policy is very low. So, how do they expect to become an EU member? My question to the Belgrade authorities is: Are you really speaking about EU membership? We don’t need a member who is aligned with Moscow, not Brussels, so think twice. It’s the leadership of Serbia, not its people or students, that is pro-Moscow. They want European money and Russian values – well, good luck with that, I don’t think even the entire 21st century would be enough to negotiate their membership on those terms.
“We sent the wrong message, and that’s why we have had complete underinvestment in the defence sector for more than three decades.”
What does ‘strategic autonomy’ of the EU mean to you, and is it opposed to the concept of NATO?
I translate this strategic autonomy as strategic responsibility. We need to explain to our citizens that we have to invest more in defence capacity, and some money which can be invested in education and infrastructure has to go to defence investments. Why? Before the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the average defence spending in Western Europe was 3.5 per cent. After that, we became relaxed, thinking that with the collapse of the Soviet Union, the threat was gone. We sent the wrong message, and that’s why we have had complete underinvestment in the defence sector for more than three decades.
Nobody was seriously looking at Russia during the 90s and they have built inside a staunch anti-Western society. From our side, it was probably negligence or even a self-imposed naivety which resulted in complete disarmament. We have to take on more financial burden and be more responsible. The EU must become a European pillar of NATO, so this idea of strengthening the EU doesn’t run counter to NATO – we need to be the bedrock in Europe of NATO.
The interview with MEP Petras Auštrevičius was conducted by Nenad Jurdana.
EU Watch interviewed Lithuanian politician Petras Auštrevičius who serves for the third time as a Member of the European Parliament. We discussed Russia’s war against Ukraine, the EU’s defense strategy and the concept of strategic autonomy vis-a-vis NATO.
EU Watch AISBL and HIAS Europe are delighted to invite you to our conference that is taking place on Monday, March 24 2025, at the Representation of the State of North-Rhein Westphalia to the EU, in Brussels.
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EU Watch interviewed Finnish politician Mika Aaltola, who serves for the first time as a Member of the European Parliament. We discussed the issues of the impact of US elections on Europe’s security, NATO and the EU enlargement.
EU Watch interviewed Austrian politician Helmut Brandstätter, who serves for the first time as a Member of the European Parliament. We discussed the issues of Ukraine’s support, EU enlargement, migration and media freedom.
