Enrico Letta on Ukraine

Enrico Letta, the author of a significant report on the EU single market, has expressed a firm conviction that the European Union has "no reason" to alter its current strategy regarding Ukraine. He advocates for the continuation of providing billions in military and financial support to Kyiv while simultaneously escalating economic pressure, in the form of sweeping sanctions packages, aimed at depleting Russia's war financing capabilities. This firm stance was articulated following a failure by some EU foreign ministers to agree on a new sanctions package against Moscow, behavior Letta denounced as a "big mistake" by Hungary, though he stopped short of endorsing Hungary's expulsion from the bloc at the time.

This position is also framed by a strong critique of past diplomatic failures, specifically referencing the period of alternative outreach to Russia under the US administration of Donald Trump, which he termed the "Alaska period," concluding it was a "total failure." Furthermore, Letta has implied that the EU alone is fundamentally incapable of autonomously defending Ukraine due to its fragmented defense structure, making continued US assistance a necessity. He sees a need for the EU to enhance its crisis-management capabilities and has noted that even important aspects like EU enlargement, which anchors Ukraine, are politically stuck.