German chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Monday that Europe “is not at war … but no longer at peace” with Russia. “Let me put it in a sentence that may be a little shocking at first glance … we are not at war, but we are no longer at peace either,” Merz said at a media event in Duesseldorf. Russia’s war is “a war against our democracy and a war against our freedom,” Merz said, adding that Moscow’s intention was to undermine unity in the bloc. He also referred to his recent endorsement of an EU plan to unlock frozen Russian assets to finance Ukraine’s war effort, saying the move could provide military support for Ukraine for three to five years.
Separately, German defence minister Boris Pistorius said Germany was ready to protect the Baltic region and would respond to Russia’s threats in a united and responsible manner. Pistorius, speaking at the opening of a Permanent Logistics Support Area in Rukla in Lithuania, said Germany was committed to strengthening deterrence, with roughly 2,000 troops to serve in Lithuania by mid-2026.
Hungary’s Viktor Orbán said on Monday that Ukraine was not a sovereign country, as he hit back at accusations that Hungarian reconnaissance drones violated its airspace. “Ukraine is not at war with Hungary; it is at war with Russia. It should be concerned with the drones on its eastern border,” the Hungarian prime minister said during an interview on a right-wing podcast popular with his supporters. “I believe my ministers, but let’s say it would have actually flown a few metres there, so what? Ukraine is not an independent country. Ukraine is not a sovereign country, Ukraine is financed by us, the West gives it funds, weapons,” Orban said. On Friday, Zelenskiy said that reconnaissance drones that violated Ukraine’s airspace could have flown from Hungary to check the industrial potential of western border areas.
