Founder of the National Interests Advocacy Network ANTS, Hanna Hopko, called on Europe to stop treating Ukraine as an “outside partner” and to acknowledge that the continent’s security frontier has long been running along the front line in the east — and Brussels does not control it. Hopko delivered this message during a panel discussion at the Committee on Security and Defence (SEDE) of the European Parliament in Brussels.
“Europe’s eastern security border does not run along the Polish-Ukrainian border. It runs along the Dnipro in the south and the steppes of Donetsk in the east. And it has been there for twelve years — regardless of whether Brussels formally acknowledges it or not. Therefore, the paradigm cannot be ‘integrating Ukraine into European defence mechanisms.’ The paradigm is this: the frontier already exists. Europe simply does not yet control it”, — Hanna Hopko stated.
During her address to European parliamentarians, Hopko called on the EU to move beyond a peacetime security mindset toward a new strategic reality.
Hopko stressed that Europe must learn from Ukraine’s battlefield experience, as modern warfare moves faster than traditional defence systems can respond. Kyiv has already become a unique source of knowledge for Brussels — knowledge that cannot be replicated in any training centre or simulation. Technologies once considered experimental — drones, autonomous systems, digital battlefield management platforms — have already become decisive tools of modern warfare.
“Ukraine is already the world’s leading laboratory for AI-driven warfare — the first country to scale both the production and combat deployment of autonomous systems at national level. This is not about partnership. This is about building a single European defence ecosystem — and Ukraine is already its key engine. Let us call it what it is: a shared European defence posture”, — Hanna Hopko stated.
According to Hopko, Ukraine already possesses unique combat experience, is defending Europe today, and is preparing it for the future. “This is not about a partnership around innovative tools. It is about building a single European defence ecosystem — and Ukraine is already its key engine”, she added.
Hanna Hopko addressed parliamentarians with a warning: integration born from ruins is the most expensive form of integration.
Hopko emphasised that the war in Ukraine is a wake-up call for all of Europe. Moving from fragmentation to strategy, investing in technology and production, building genuine defence readiness — not tomorrow, but now.
“Learning from Ukraine means changing today. Because tomorrow may be too late“, — the Head of ANTS concluded.
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This publication was prepared during the project, «Stronger Europe, United Front – Advancing Ukraine’s EU Membership for Greater Resilience and Security», was funded by the European Union. The content of this publication/video/material is the sole responsibility of the “ANTS” NGO and does not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.
