Russian President Vladimir Putin has been “weakened” by the insurgency of Wagner’s mercenary group, making him “more dangerous”, European foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Thursday as he arrived at the European Council in Brussels, AFP and Agerpres. report.

“A weakened Putin is more dangerous,” Borrell warned, stressing the risk of “instability” for Russia.

Vladimir Putin is “conducting an internal purge” with the arrests of generals and trying to find out “who is behind this attempted armed rebellion,” Borrell said.

Ukraine will be at the center of negotiations between European leaders on Thursday, with President Volodymyr Zelensky’s scheduled video conference speech.

This uprising has shown that there are “deep cracks” in the system created by Putin and “this will have consequences for us”, warned, for her part, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, regarding the events that took place in Russia on Saturday.

The EU and NATO confirm their support for Ukraine

“It is important to increase support for Ukraine, its military potential and financial assistance,” von der Leyen urged after arriving in Brussels. On June 20, the European Commission proposed to member states to approve an aid package for Ukraine in the amount of 50 billion euros until 2027, an additional contribution to the multi-year EU budget for the period 2021-2027.

“We have to make sure that Ukraine is able to defend itself,” insisted the head of European diplomacy. “The European Peace Fund should continue to be financed and possibly become a Ukrainian defense fund,” he suggested.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who was invited to the summit, also spoke in favor of long-term support for Ukraine, which seeks to join the North Atlantic Alliance and the EU.

“We must continue to support Ukraine so that it remains a sovereign and independent state, otherwise the accession debate will be irrelevant,” he warned.

Follow the latest events of the 491st day of the war in Ukraine LIVETEXT on HOTNEWS.RO.