The two ministers wrote in a
joint article published on the Czech website Denik on Tuesday that the Russian assets could be used either directly or as loan guarantees.
“Who should bear the costs of war—the victim and its allies or the aggressor? We cannot look for excuses when help is so desperately needed and so easily available,” they argued.
In the article,
Sikorski and Lipavský also proposed increasing the European Peace Facility by EUR 5 billion this year and purchasing artillery shells as part of an initiative led by the Czech Republic, as sources indicated.
“This is not the time to be picky. The development of long-term European defense capabilities and industry is crucial, but Ukraine needs these missiles now. On the front line, it does not matter where they come from,” they wrote.
According to them, these measures need to be taken not to escalate the conflict, but to end it.
“Not to endanger our citizens, but to keep the danger as far away from us as possible. Not to 'provoke' Putin, but to help the victim. And maybe even Russia itself,” they wrote.
The ministers cited the deceased Zbigniew Brzezinski, who served as the U.S. national security adviser under President Jimmy Carter: “Without Ukraine, Russia ceases to be an empire, but with Ukraine suborned and then subordinated, Russia automatically becomes an empire.”
“The choice is clear,” they wrote.
“We will either have a defeated Russian army on Ukraine's eastern border or a victorious, complacent Russian army just on Nato's doorstep. In moments like these, we can either lament how unstable the world has become or work to restore stability,” they concluded.
