"Never again" we said almost 80 years ago, after the guns of the World War II finally fell silent. Today, instead of learning from our history, we seem to be repeating it. German defence minister warns Russia could attack NATO in 5 to 8 years. His Danish counterpart concurs but argues we have even less time – 3 to 5 years.

In the heart of Europe cities are being bombed, civilians are being killed, children are being abducted.

The EU is moving in the right direction but too slow and too late.

"This is certainly no way to win," say Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský and Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski. They urge immediate assistance to the Ukrainian Armed Forces and warn of the consequences if Russia wins in Ukraine. Read more in their joint article – "Ukrainians are brave but not superhumans." Joint article by Foreign Ministers on Ukraine's path to victory.

We can create a more secure and stable world.

To achieve these goals, however, we must first help Ukrainian defence forces here and now. 

First, top-up the European Peace Facility by €5 billion this year.

Second, buy artillery shells from sources and countries identified by the Czech initiative. Is not a time to be picky. Developing European long-term defence capabilities and industry is crucial but Ukraine needs these shells immediately. On the battlefield it matters not where they came from.

Third, make use of the Russian frozen assets. Either directly, or by using them as collateral to raise debt or as guarantees for loans. 

Who ought to cover the cost of war – the victim and its allies, or the perpetrator? We should not be looking for excuses when help is so desperately needed and so readily available.

Let’s take these actions not to escalate the conflict but to end it. Not to "provoke" Putin but to help his victim. And maybe even Russia itself.

Bear in mind that Kremlin’s unprovoked aggression is nothing more but the last colonial war in Europe. 

Zbigniew Brzezinski, National Security Advisor to president Jimmy Carter, once said that "without Ukraine, Russia ceases to be an empire, but with Ukraine suborned and then subordinated, Russia automatically becomes an empire". 

Imperialist Russia will never be a democratic one.

It is not only about Ukraine.

Putin’s insatiable ambitions go much further.

The risks of yielding to Russian aggression stretch beyond borders, echoing the haunting history of past appeasements. Every day that passes with Putin occupying swaths of Ukrainian land, makes the appetite of other authoritarians seeking to redraw borders grow.

The choice is clear – we can either deal with a defeated Russian army at Ukraine’s eastern border, or a victorious, emboldened one right at NATO’s doorstep. Today, we can either lament how the world has gotten so unstable, or we can act to bring the stability back.