Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva held a working meeting with representatives of the European Union member states who have resumed their diplomatic presence in Kyiv. Among them are the Ambassadors of Spain, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, Slovakia, as well as Chargé d'Affaires of Estonia, Poland, Slovenia, France and the Czech Republic in Ukraine.
Ihor Zhovkva thanked the heads of diplomatic missions of the European Union who returned to Kyiv to fulfill their duties: "This demonstrates your firm solidarity with the people of Ukraine who oppose Russian aggression."
He commended the continued political support and significant practical assistance provided by the governments of these countries since the first day of the large-scale Russian invasion. In this regard, the Deputy Head of the Office of the President stressed the importance of the visits of European leaders to Ukraine and expressed hope that the number of such visits will continue to grow.
Ihor Zhovkva also thanked the EU countries for the important humanitarian aid and support for Ukrainian citizens who were forced to leave their homeland due to Russian aggression and found refuge thanks to our European partners.
The Deputy Head of the Office of the President stressed the need to increase EU sanctions on Russia in order to encourage it to immediately cease hostilities and liberate the temporarily occupied territories.
"The sixth package of sanctions must be implemented as soon as possible. It must contain an embargo on Russian oil, disconnect all Russian banks from SWIFT and stop the broadcast of Russian TV channels in the EU," said Ihor Zhovkva.
The parties focused on steps aimed at Ukraine's accession to the EU as soon as possible.
"Granting Ukraine the status of a candidate country for EU membership as soon as possible should be a symbolic step of support from the leaders of the EU member states. Today, Ukraine is defending not only itself but the whole of Europe, and hence proved its belonging to the European Union. Ukraine and Ukrainians deserve this decision," said the Deputy Head of the Office of the President.
He also noted that due to Russian aggression and the systematic destruction of critical and social infrastructure, there is an urgent need to launch the Trust Fund for Solidarity with Ukraine as soon as possible.
Ihor Zhovkva also informed about the initiative of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy to involve partner countries in the reconstruction of certain cities and regions affected by the war, and called on representatives of EU member states to actively decide on such assistance.