**LONDON**
The president of the European Council said Tuesday that Europe is a peace project, but peace without defense is an illusion.
Antonio Costa told the European Policy Centre in Brussels that Europe’s security starts in Ukraine, and Russia's war on Ukraine gave the EU a "new sense of urgency" for its strategic autonomy not only on energy, but also on defense.
"Leading us to a collective effort to boost our defense spending by more than 30% since then," he said.
Costa argued that Europe needs to continue to stand "shoulder-to-shoulder" with Ukrainians to create the conditions for a just, comprehensive and lasting peace in Ukraine and Europe.
"If Russia considers that Ukraine’s borders are just a line on a map, why should it respect any other country’s borders," he asked.
Costa added that by supporting Ukraine, the EU is supporting the UN Charter, the international rules-based order, in Europe and beyond.
The EU Council president noted that Europe must acquire all means to defend itself against military aggression.
"But we must do so in a way that is truly European, focusing especially on those capabilities that are necessary for our collective security, like air and missile defense, and electronic warfare."
"We must do so in a collaborative way, through aggregation of demand, harmonization of requirements and joint procurement with the aim of reducing overall costs, ensuring standardization and interoperability. We need to be more collectively efficient," added Costa.
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