BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders are holding emergency summit talks to beef up their own military defenses and make sure Ukraine will still be properly protected by its allies. Friedrich Merz, the likely next chancellor of Germany, was conferring with summit host Antonio Costa on Thursday morning. They want to meet the challenge on a short deadline only days after Merz pushed plans to loosen the nation’s rules on running up debt to allow for higher defense spending. At the same time, the 27-nation bloc was waking up to the news from French President Emmanuel Macron would confer with EU leaders the possibility of using France’s nuclear deterrent to protect the continent from Russian threats.