EU Commission chief "confident" of US support for Ukraine As concerns grow about the future of US support for Kyiv, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in Granada that she has confidence in Washington’s commitment. “It was very important that President Biden informed us at the beginning of this week, what the support for Ukraine is” from the US side. “Here in the European Union we are working on a package of €50bn for Ukraine for the years [20]24 to [20]27. This is very important because Ukraine needs predictability and reliability in the direct budget support,” the commission chief said. “As far as I [see] the situation in the United States, I am very confident of support for Ukraine from the United States – what the United States is working on is the timing.” Summary of the day Leaders from over 40 countries met in Granada, Spain for the third summit of the European Political Community. While the session was focused on Europe, America’s internal politics – and in particular the future of aid to Ukraine – were on many people’s minds. Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said he has American support. But he also said it’s a “difficult” election period for the US and there are some “strange” voices. European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, said she was “very confident of support for Ukraine from the United States – what the United States is working on is the timing”. Irish leader, Leo Vardkar, said he was “concerned” to see the UK “disengaging from the world”, and accused it of turning inwards by leaving the EU, slashing international aid and now considering abandoning a human rights treaty. Varadkar and the British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, held a bilateral meeting. It is concerning to watch UK disengage from the world, says Irish PM Ireland’s prime minister has said he is “concerned” to see the UK “disengaging from the world”, and accused it of turning inwards by leaving the EU, slashing international aid and now considering abandoning a human rights treaty. Leo Varadkar, speaking before a bilateral meeting with Rishi Sunak, the British prime minister, in the Spanish city of Granada, he said he could barely recognise the country. Asked it he was concerned over threats made by the UK to walk away from the European convention on human rights, he replied: “I am to be honest.” The home secretary, Suella Braverman, has questioned whether the convention is “fit for purpose”. “The Britain and United Kingdom that I love and admire, it is the country of the Magna Carta, the country that founded parliamentary democracy and the country that helped to write the European convention on human rights,” Varadkar said. “It does bother me to see the United Kingdom disengaging from the world – whether it’s reducing its budget for international aid, whether it’s leaving the European Union and now even talking about withdrawing from the European convention on human rights. That’s not the Britain I know,” he said. Ireland’s Leo Varadkar and the British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, are now meeting in Granada. ‘Great meeting’ Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, thanked France’s Emmanuel Macron and said “there will be more good news for our warriors”. No Sunak presser The British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, has cancelled plans for a press conference following his bilaterals with European leaders. As the host of the next European Political Community, Sunak was expected to talk about plans for the UK version to be held next June. But it is understood he feels he cannot fully commit to hosting the EPC unless there are reforms to its very loose format. Slovakia’s caretaker prime minister has assured Ukraine of his country’s support. The move comes as Slovakia prepares for a new government, with fears that the country’s foreign policy will shift to a more Russia-friendly stance. In another sign that Armenia is distancing itself from Moscow, the Armenian prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, met with Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Granada. Earlier in the day, European Council president Charles Michel called for a rapprochement with Armenia. Watch: Zelenskiy addresses European leaders in Granada European parliament calls for sanctions on Azerbaijan While leaders meet in Spain, the European parliament approved a resolution calling on the EU to adopt targeted sanctions against officials in Baku. MEPs are calling on the bloc to reassess its relationship with Azerbaijan and reduce its dependency on gas imports from the country. 491 members voted in favour and 9 against, with 36 abstentions. EPC an ‘empty shell’, thinktanker says Gerald Knaus, chair of the European Stability Initiative, a thinktank, told the Guardian today that he believes the European Political Community “had its moment of glory” at a summit in Moldova earlier this year “and it can now basically disband.” “It was very useful to bring everybody to Moldova – so it gave a huge boost of morale to the Moldovan reformers, that was great,” he said. But now, he said, the EPC is “an empty shell”. “It’s all the same members as the Council of Europe except there is no court, no human rights convention, no assembly, no secretariat,” Knaus noted. “So just having leaders meet without an agenda, without anything that explains why they meet, without any values or even the most basic institutions … I really don’t see what the value added of the EPC could be.” The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, told leaders she wants more cooperation on issues ranging from clean hydrogen to raw materials. While Azerbaijan’s leadership was a no-show at the Granada summit, Hikmet Hajiyev, an adviser to president Ilham Aliyev, said that Baku is open to a meeting in Brussels. “Azerbaijan stands ready for tripartite meetings in Brussels soon in the format of the European Union, Azerbaijan and Armenia,” he wrote on social media. Metsola invites Armenian leader to address European parliament Watch: Zelenskiy speaks in Granada