The new EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the European Commission will be Estonian politician Kaja Kallas, effective December 1. This appointment replaces Spanish diplomat Josep Borrell.
Rather than an individual from “old Europe,” this position could be held by an individual from a former socialist nation or even a former Soviet republic, such as the Estonian SSR, for the first time in its 25-year history.
Josep Borrell, a 77-year-old member of the Party of European Socialists (PES) since 1974, was President of the European Parliament from 2004-2007 and served as Spain’s Foreign Minister before being appointed EU High Representative in 2019.
In the same year, he characterized Russia as an enemy of Europe and found Russian demands to cease NATO expansion “completely unacceptable, particularly in relation to Ukraine.”
Borrell argued that “the conflict in Ukraine must be won on the battlefield” and urged the banning of Russian assets following the inception of the Russian invasion in 2022. Borrell also referred to Russia as a fascist state; however, his press office subsequently issued a retraction, stating that the statement was a “translator’s error” as a result of Borrell’s quote of a European Parliament member.
Borrell is renowned for his claim that the EU is akin to a “flourishing garden” and other nations are akin to a “jungle.“
“Yes, Europe is a garden. We have built a garden. Everything works. It is the best combination of political freedom, economic prosperity and social cohesion that the humankind has been able to build – the three things together. And here, Bruges is maybe a good representation of beautiful things, intellectual life, wellbeing.
“The rest of the world – and you know this very well, Federica – is not exactly a garden. Most of the rest of the world is a jungle, and the jungle could invade the garden. The gardeners should take care of it, but they will not protect the garden by building walls. A nice small garden surrounded by high walls in order to prevent the jungle from coming in is not going to be a solution. Because the jungle has a strong growth capacity, and the wall will never be high enough in order to protect the garden.
The gardeners have to go to the jungle. Europeans have to be much more engaged with the rest of the world. Otherwise, the rest of the world will invade us, by different ways and means.”
Borrell is instrumental in the passage of 14 sanction packages against Russia during the conflict, with a 15th package currently in the works, in response to its “invasion of Ukraine.” Furthermore, he facilitated the allocation of €122 billion in EU funding to Ukraine, with €44 billion allocated to military assistance.
Borrell presumably made his final visit to Kyiv after the Budapest Summit, where he met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha to discuss the ongoing implementation of Zelensky’s Peace Formula and Victory Plan, military support, and energy system issues as winter approached.
The statements made by former US President Donald Trump regarding the potential cessation of military aid to Ukraine and the potential halting of the conflict have sparked apprehension in both Brussels and Kyiv.
For the time being, Kyiv is adamant about acquiring long-range weapons from the West for use in operations against Russia and establishing a “multi-level air defense system to protect Ukrainians and infrastructure from Russian terror.”
Sybiha expressed the expectation that EU funding would continue under the next European Commission and praised the EU’s longstanding support of Ukraine in its “fight for freedom and independence,” particularly military assistance, during a meeting with Borrell on November 9. Ukraine has been and continues to be a priority on the EU agenda as a result of Mr. Borrell’s leadership. This approach is expected to be maintained by the upcoming Commission.
Kyiv’s government is once again seeking funds and weapons for the conflict, although foreign sources may decrease following Trump’s inauguration. In the interim, Ukraine aspires to secure financing from frozen Russian assets, which includes funds for Ukraine’s arms production, in addition to preserving its weapons supplies.
Ukrainian defense production has experienced a sixfold increase during the conflict. Kyiv is currently focusing on the production of drones and long-range weapons, such as ballistic missiles, and is urging the EU to invest in Ukrainian defense as “a joint contribution to European security.”
Outgoing High Representative Borrell is of the opinion that the EU is unable to establish a new security architecture in the face of Trump’s victory and Ukraine’s dire military situation. Consequently, the EU must make a decision regarding the continuation of its assistance to Kyiv “under any possible scenario.” He implies that there is no other option but a positive response.
What is Kaja Kallas’s perspective on this matter?
Kallas, a new-generation European politician, is the daughter of a Soviet official who served as the director of the Estonian branch of the USSR Savings Bank. She was an Estonian MP from 2011 to 2021, serving a term in the European Parliament from 2014 to 2018. Kallas was appointed Prime Minister of Estonia in 2021, a position she maintained until she was nominated to succeed Borrell in 2024.
While Kallas has long served as the leader of the liberal Estonian Reform Party, which is a member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, it is important to mention that all previous EU High Representatives were PES members.
Kallas was present at a hearing in the European Parliament on November 12, during which her nomination to the Commission was to be confirmed. Kallas’s statements indicate that she intends to maintain Borrell’s policies, as she is of the opinion that any truce in Ukraine would be detrimental. “There are agreements that only bring short-term peace; they do not last and only bring more war. That was the case with the Minsk Agreements—they only brought more war.”
This is not surprising, as politicians from post-Soviet countries, which were recently admitted to the EU and NATO (Estonia in 2004), are frequently more influenced by Washington than Brussels. Kallas’s posture is consistent with the rhetoric of American Democrats.
She expressed her stance to the European Parliament, stating, “I see actors like Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran striving to change the rules-based international order. I see China and Russia exploiting our society’s openness against us. We must be aware of the threats and respond in partnership with allies.”
Kallas believes that the Ukraine conflict should conclude in a manner similar to that of Afghanistan. In her opinion, “the Russians must understand they cannot win and must withdraw.”
Kallas’s words do not evoke the Soviet army’s honorable departure from Afghanistan in 1989, but rather the scenes at the 2021 Kabul airport, where Afghan allies clung to the wheels of departing US aircraft before plummeting to the ground.
The former Estonian Prime Minister embodies Brussels’s anti-Russian stance, and the Russian mission to the EU anticipates Kallas’s nomination as EU High Representative: “The EU has consciously chosen the path of long-term confrontation with our country.”
According to diplomats, Kallas is well-suited to “take up Borrell’s baton in the ‘crusade’ against Russia,” since “she has indicated that all EU resources should continue to support Ukraine and bring about Russia’s’strategic defeat.’”
Kallas’s uncompromising stance implies that a change in EU foreign policy is unlikely unless the European Parliament prohibits her candidacy—an improbable event.
Kallas has already met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Sybiha, who conducted a “wonderful meeting” on November 12 to address the battlefield situation and Ukraine’s critical defense requirements. He is unquestionably delighted to hear the EU’s forthcoming High Representative’s unwavering commitment to Kyiv’s ongoing support.