Senior Diplomat Of European Union Values Need To Become Military Strength, Russian Foreign Minister: There Is No Smoke Without Fire

Menteri Luar Negeri Russia Sergei Lavrov. (Wikimedia Commons/Administration of the President of Russia)

JAKARTA - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said statements by the European Union's Head of Foreign Policy regarding the alliance being a serious military force are only words, but there is no smoke without fire.

"Perhaps, these are mere words, but there is no smoke without fire", Foreign Minister Lavrov said at a press conference after a visit to Saudi Arabia, as reported by TASS on June 2.

"There really is such a strong Russophobia wing in the European Union, which for years has effectively forced its position on everyone, exploiting the principles of solidarity and consensus."

This wing continued Foreign Minister Lavrov, "is now increasing its activity."

"Borrell's remarks, despite the inappropriateness of the aggressive words that come out of the mouth of the EU's top diplomat, reflect the trend that an aggressive minority is imposing on the entire European Union", he said. And the ideal for this minority, Lavrov says, is "a militarized European Union as an appendage to NATO."

Earlier, Josep Borrell ahead of Tuesday's EU summit said the conflict in Ukraine had made it clear that soft power was not enough so the EU needed to become a military power.

"What we have learned from the Ukraine war is, trade is not enough, the rule of law is not enough, it is not enough to be a good civilian force, we also need to be a military force", he said.

"Defense is the competence of member states. Of course, we must do more. But we have to do it all together. If every member country increases its spending, each on their side, increasing X percent of what they already have, it will be a waste of money because we are not going to fix the duplication we have, it's the same thing multiple times, both gaps, something we don't have."

"So we have to increase our spending in a coordinated manner and it won't be easy because the army, the defense capability, is at the core of national sovereignty. And to try to pull out all the development of the army, it will require a lot of political skills", the EU's top diplomat added.

Borrell said that as head of the European Defense Agency, he would present a report at the event, on bringing the defense and military industries together.

To note, previously, the United States and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) emphasized the need for European Union countries, to increase their military spending to two percent of GDP.