Luxembourg Reiterates Continued Support for Ukraine at European Summit

Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel took part in a special one-day European Council summit in Brussels on Thursday 9 and Friday 10 February 2023.

On the agenda were topics ranging from Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine to the economic situation in the European Union (EU) and aspects of European migration policy.

On Thursday, in the margins of discussions in the usual format, EU leaders had the opportunity to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who had travelled to Brussels for meetings at various EU institutions. During this multilateral meeting, Prime Minister Bettel emphasised that "Luxembourg will continue to support Ukraine by offering military assistance, humanitarian aid and support in international fora to ensure that no war crimes go unpunished. A special tribunal, established through an agreement between Ukraine and the United Nations, seems to be the best option in order to ensure accountability for the crime of aggression against Ukraine and to overcome the problem of personal immunity of Russian leaders."

Regarding the economic discussions in Brussels, Luxembourg's Ministry of State recalled that, for the Grand Duchy, the single market is at the heart of the EU's economic resilience and its open strategic autonomy. The rigorous implementation of the acquis communautaire is considered key to the credibility and effectiveness of the single market and to political and legal certainty, including on the international stage. Luxembourg's Prime Minister reminded his counterparts: "In general, Luxembourg has a clear preference for a simplification and extension of the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER), which, if further simplified, would provide the necessary predictability and legal certainty for businesses in the long term."

The conclusions of this summit set out measures to support long-term competitiveness, such as simplified state aid procedures, funds to facilitate the green transition and simple, predictable and clear framework conditions to encourage investment.

Regarding common solutions to migratory flows, Prime Minister Bettel welcomed the work of the French and Czech presidencies on the Asylum and Migration Pact. He recalled that Luxembourg fully supports a comprehensive reform of the EU's migration and asylum policies and will continue to fully support the ongoing work in the relevant fora on the various legislative instruments. Luxembourg's Prime Minister stated: "We must remain ambitious and mention that this work should be completed before the end of the legislature."

The conclusions also include a passage on the earthquake in Turkey and Syria, stating that the EU remains ready to provide further assistance to alleviate the suffering in all regions. A donor conference will be held to mobilise financial assistance from the international community.