After the end of the war, Ukraine will be a strong state - a member of the European Union, around which a new security system in Europe will be built, Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak is convinced. He stated this in an interview with the Interfax-Ukraine agency.
"I definitely see Ukraine as a very powerful state. I see Ukraine, which for many centuries has gained a sense of its own dignity, unfortunately, having experienced a terrible tragedy, losing a huge number of people. I see it as the center of Eastern Europe, the center of building a new security system, at least in Europe. I am convinced of this," said Andriy Yermak, answering a question about his vision of Ukraine after the war.
The Head of the President's Office expressed the belief that our country has already gained respect, so after the war, Ukraine will definitely be reckoned with and will never again be treated as a country that can only be pitied.
"I also see a very quick membership of Ukraine in the European Union. I will tell you honestly: I believe in signing not only a global agreement on security guarantees, but also in signing bilateral agreements on security guarantees with our leading partners," said Andriy Yermak.
"If we talk about domestic politics, I think that we are so free that nothing else but democracy is in our blood. We simply will not accept anything else. The government should be democratic, based on fundamental values, for which we are actually fighting today. I do not know whether there will be any changes in the political system. We’ll see. The most important thing is that the priority should be the values for which the entire Ukrainian people are fighting," he emphasized.
Regarding the post-war relations between Ukraine and Russia, the Head of the President's Office expressed his belief that the return to the "fraternal relations" that Russia constantly talked about is impossible.
"Whether it will be a new "Berlin Wall" or just pragmatic coexistence is difficult to say. First of all, because it is difficult to say what will happen to Russia. Probably, a lot will depend on this, too. But there is great symbolism in the fact that, destroying old Soviet buildings and infrastructure, they also destroyed Ukraine's last link with the USSR. Even people who lived in the Soviet Union will no longer have any sentiments. And that's good," Andriy Yermak said.
As the Head of the President's Office noted, the Ukrainian people have turned this page forever and see their future in the European vector of development and Western values.
"So any thoughts about how relations with Russia will be built in the future, after this war, will depend on what will happen to this country," concluded Andriy Yermak.