Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says time has come for the creation of ‘armed forces of Europe’

Zelenskyy calls for European armed forces; Scholz defends democracy; Vance warns of free speech retreat; Trump-Putin peace talks.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday (February 15, 2025) the time has come for the creation of an “armed forces of Europe” and says his country’s fight against Russia has proved that a foundation for it already exists.

The Ukrainian leader said Europe cannot rule out the possibility that “American might say no to Europe on issues that threaten it,” and noted that many leaders have long spoken about how Europe needs its own military.

“I really believe that time has come,” Mr. Zelenskyy told the Munich Security Conference. “The armed forces of Europe must be created.”

Earlier, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz shot back strongly in defense of his stance against the far-right and said his country won’t accept people who “intervene in our democracy,” a day after U.S. Vice President JD Vance scolded European leaders over their approach to democracy.

The German leader spoke at the Munich Security Conference with just eight days before crucial elections in Germany, with polls showing the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party — whose co-leader met with Vance on Friday — currently in second, ahead of Scholz's own Social Democrats.

Even while lashing out at alleged U.S. meddling in Germany's democracy, Scholz said he was “pleased” at what he called a shared commitment with the United States to the “preserving the sovereign independence of Ukraine,” and agreed with comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that Russia's war in Ukraine must end.

But when it came to domestic politics, Scholz also alluded to Germany's Nazi past, and said the longstanding commitment to “Never Again” — a return to the extreme right — was not reconcilable with support for AfD.