Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva had a phone conversation with State Secretary for Foreign Affairs of the Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Slovenia Vojko Volk.
Ihor Zhovkva thanked the Slovenian side for its humanitarian assistance and special care for the temporarily displaced Ukrainians who were forced to flee their homes as a result of Russia's military aggression and took refuge in friendly Slovenia.
Discussing the issues of European integration, Ihor Zhovkva expressed conviction that Ukraine will receive the status of a candidate country for EU membership in June this year.
"Such a decision of our European friends will be a powerful manifestation of political support for Ukraine and a significant symbolic step for the entire Ukrainian people in this historic time for us," he said.
Vojko Volk agreed with the high political weight of this step expected from the EU for Ukraine and noted that our state has the unwavering support of Slovenia in this matter.
The Deputy Head of the Office of the President also shared his views on the support for granting this status to Ukraine by a number of Balkan countries, which are also moving towards EU accession.
"Ukraine is willing to learn the European integration experience of the countries of the Western Balkans region, as well as to work closely with those countries that have been the last to gain full membership in the EU so far," said Ihor Zhovkva.
Vojko Volk expressed readiness to share with Ukraine the experience of Slovenia gained during the accession to the European Union.
The Deputy Head of the Office of the President thanked the Republic of Slovenia for supporting the introduction of the sixth package of EU sanctions against Russia and informed about the need to further increase the sanctions pressure. The next, seventh package should include new sectoral sanctions in the areas of energy, finance and trade, new personal sanctions against Russian oligarchs, high-ranking government officials and heads of state-owned enterprises, as well as the elimination of all opportunities to circumvent and evade sanctions.
"Ukraine, together with its European partners, will make every effort to ensure that the aggressor bears full responsibility for its actions against our state," Ihor Zhovkva stressed.