Tag: President of Ukraine

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 11 June 2022.

During a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for the preparation of the seventh package of sanctions against Russia, which should be even more powerful.

“I am grateful to the European Union for its sanctions policy against Russia, which is very helpful in our struggle. Six packages of EU sanctions have become a tangible instrument of pressure on Russia during the war. But the war continues. Therefore, the seventh package of sanctions is needed, and it should be even more powerful,” the President said during a meeting with media representatives following talks with Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv.

In particular, according to him, all Russian officials and judges working for war and repression should be subject to sanctions. The European Union must also completely block the activities of all Russian banks. First of all, this applies to Gazprombank, which finances Russia’s anti-European policy. In addition, sanctions are needed against all Russian companies that in one way or another help the state in the military sphere or in suppressing democracy and freedom of speech.

“And, of course, the European Union, for its own benefit, must work much faster to completely abandon Russia’s energy resources. This is a fundamental issue of security for all – both for Ukraine and for each EU state,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, adding that work is underway on other areas of sanctions policy as well.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 11 June 2022.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, who is on a visit to our country.

The President greeted the President of the European Commission in Ukraine, noting that this is her second visit in two months during a full-scale war, which testifies to the significant contribution of Mrs. Ursula von der Leyen to the support for our country and the common struggle for freedom in Europe.

“It is definitely a crucial time. And not only for Ukraine, but also for the European Union. It is now being determined what the future of a united Europe will be and whether this future will be at all. Russia wants to destroy European unity, it wants to leave Europe divided and weak. The whole of Europe is a target for Russia, and Ukraine is only the first stage in this aggression, in these plans. That is why the European Union’s positive response to Ukraine’s application for membership can be a positive response to the question of whether the European project has a future at all,” said Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting with media representatives after talks with the European Commission President in Kyiv.

The Head of State stressed that the Ukrainian people have already made an extremely great contribution to the protection of common freedom and European values and proved that state and public institutions in Ukraine remain stable and Ukrainians are fully integrated into the European space.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy also noted that the Ukrainian authorities have provided comprehensive answers to the questionnaire in a very short time and are waiting for the European Commission’s conclusion next week on Ukraine’s compliance with the Copenhagen criteria for EU membership.

“The vast majority of Europeans consider Ukraine part of the European family. And rightly so. We are very much looking forward to the recognition of such a reality at the political level on June 23-24, when the historic meeting of the European Council is to take place. Meeting, the logical decision of which should be to grant Ukraine the status of a candidate country. We really believe in that,” he said.

The President of Ukraine noted that the candidate status is only the beginning of the movement towards EU membership, and Ukraine will still have to cover the path from candidate to full membership.

“But everyone has already seen that the Ukrainian people value freedom so much and are so much ready to fight for their future that they will do everything necessary for Ukraine’s European integration. The European project certainly cannot be complete without us, without Ukraine, and this is absolutely obvious right now, when the Ukrainian people are bravely defending the future for themselves and all the nations of Europe,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.

The President also thanked Ursula von der Leyen for the European Commission’s proposal of a new program of assistance to Ukraine in the amount of 9 billion euros and efforts to prepare for the reconstruction of our country after the war.

“We are coordinating our steps in this direction to synchronize our internal Plan for the reconstruction of Ukraine and the European Platform for the reconstruction of our state. I believe that together with the European Commission and European countries we will be able to create all conditions for the most ambitious economic project of our time, namely – full and rapid recovery of Ukraine after this tragedy, after this war,” said the President.

The President noted that the decision to abolish tariffs and quotas on Ukrainian exports to the European Union has already entered into force. He also thanked for organizing “green corridors” to promote exports from Ukraine.

“We have already started negotiations in the field of transport to conclude an agreement on the liberalization of road freight transport. In the field of energy, the synchronization of our energy network with the European one has reached a new level – from now on, significant exports of our electricity to the countries of the European Union are possible. All this and many other lines of our cooperation strengthen both Ukraine and our neighbors in the EU, and, I believe, strengthen the entire European Union,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.

For her part, Ursula von der Leyen noted that by the end of next week the European Commission should complete discussions on granting Ukraine the status of a candidate for accession to the European Union.

“On this path, we very much appreciate the efforts that Ukraine is making and the determination with which your country is moving. People have proven their motivation and determination. Therefore, I am convinced that together we will be able to overcome this terrible war. Together we will rebuild this beautiful country, modernize Ukraine,” said the President of the European Commission.

She noted that the European Commission is working on the Platform for Reconstruction of Ukraine and is very enthusiastic about this issue.

“EU member states, other partners of Ukraine, international financial institutions, civil society, people, business are very interested in supporting the reconstruction of Ukraine,” said Ursula von der Leyen.

According to her, this platform will allow synchronizing joint work on the restoration of Ukraine.

“We want to direct investments, ensure the implementation of reforms, so that it improves the lives of Ukrainians, so that we can rebuild Ukraine, make it attractive for investment, so that Ukraine creates attractive conditions for doing business and can move towards the European Union,” she said.

Ursula von der Leyen stressed that Ukraine has implemented important reforms in the areas of economy and the rule of law. According to her, our country must continue this path.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 11 June 2022.

Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva met with a delegation of the informal international network United for Ukraine, which included representatives of the national parliaments of Lithuania, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Sweden and Spain.

Ihor Zhovkva noted the efforts of the association, which now has more than 280 former and current deputies and high-ranking officials from more than 30 countries, to promote the Ukrainian agenda both within the authorities and societies of their countries and internationally.

The Deputy Head of the Office of the President briefed European politicians on the current security situation in Ukraine. He expressed hope that foreign parliamentarians would continue to make every effort for their countries to promptly supply the weapons Ukraine needs, as well as to impose sanctions on Russia.

The issue of granting our country the status of a candidate for EU membership during the European Council meeting on June 23-24 this year was discussed separately.

“It is gratifying that all the deputies present here, even from Germany, support granting Ukraine the status of a candidate for EU membership already in June. The adoption of such a formal decision at the upcoming meeting of the European Council is the key to the victory of our country in the war against Russia,” said Ihor Zhovkva.

The Deputy Head of the Office of the President praised the network’s efforts to rebuild Ukraine, as well as its proactive role in bringing the Russian military to justice for crimes committed in Ukraine. In this context, Ihor Zhovkva called on the parliaments of the member states to call things by their names and recognize Russia’s crimes in Ukraine as genocide of the Ukrainian people, and Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.

“This is not only a question of historical justice, but also an important legal basis for the activities of the postwar international tribunal,” said Ihor Zhovkva.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 11 June 2022.

Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Kyrylo Tymoshenko held a meeting with representatives of theUNICEF on the restoration of educational and children’s institutions that had been destroyed or damaged as a result of the Russian invasion.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko informed the UNICEF representatives about the plan to restore infrastructure in the affected regions of Ukraine. This plan consists of 16 clusters (houses, schools, kindergartens, sports facilities, roads).

“We need a rapid recovery plan that will help us rebuild homes, kindergartens and medical infrastructure. This is the infrastructure we want to rebuild now, without delay,” said the Deputy Head of the Office of the President.

Kyrylo Tymoshenko informed about the number of schools that were completely destroyed or damaged during the enemy shelling.

He stressed that the Ukrainian authorities are negotiating with representatives of private business and non-governmental organizations that may be involved in financing the restoration of educational infrastructure.

The Deputy Head of the President’s Office told about the projects to rebuild schools that are planned to be implemented with the participation of private investors.

For her part, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, Special Coordinator for the Refugee and Migrant Response Afshan Khan said that the organization supports fundraising initiatives for new equipment and educational materials for Ukrainian schools, as well as training for teachers.

UNICEF representatives stressed the need to use new design decisions and build inclusive spaces when renovating schools and kindergartens.

The Deputy Head of the Office of the President also informed about the initiative of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which provides for the patronage of Ukraine’s partner countries to restore the regions of our country affected as a result of the Russian invasion.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 10 June 2022.

The reconstruction of housing destroyed by the Russian occupiers should include not only the construction of new buildings, but also the construction of a new, modern Ukraine, which at a high price has gained its independence and the way to the future. This was stated by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during an online conversation with students of universities in the UK.

“I really want people to return to their native country, to their native streets, but to a slightly different Ukraine, which has already gained independence and a future for itself. I really want this future to be mentally not in Stalin’s apartments, but in the independent Ukrainian space. And at the physical level there will be large construction and restoration of our state,” he said.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that it is planned to restore all residential buildings that were destroyed as a result of the Russian invasion, and such reconstruction will depend on global financial support.

“Now is the moment of truth, now is the war. And when we win, we will build our new state, not forgetting our wonderful history and our traditions,” the President said.

The President stressed that building a new, modern state is impossible without the active participation of young people who will offer their vision of the future of Ukraine.

“I can’t build a comfortable state for you without you. I can build a state for all of us, for our generation, for the elderly. We can build a modern country, but it is impossible to build the future without the younger generation,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

He noted that despite the modernity and creativity, the Ukrainian authorities cannot see tomorrow as young people can.

“We cannot look ahead and see the future as transparently as you. Each generation is better than the previous one, more modern than the previous one. I can’t offer you anything. I can help you realize your dreams and your Ukraine, your vision of the future,” the President stressed.

Students and professors from leading British universities, including the London School of Economics and Political Science, University of Birmingham, University of Cambridge, City, University of London, Coventry University, University of Glasgow, University of Manchester, University of Oxford, University College London, etc. took part in the meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Representatives of the British media were present at several universities.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 10 June 2022.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Secretary of State for Defence of the United Kingdom Ben Wallace, who is in Kyiv on a working visit.

The President thanked the Secretary of State for Defence of the United Kingdom for the effective support for Ukraine by the British government in our fight against Russian aggression. Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that Great Britain is a true friend of Ukraine. This was especially evident after the beginning of Russia’s unprovoked brutal aggression against our state.

“The war has shown who our real friends and partners are. Not only strategic, but also those effective today. One of such friends is the United Kingdom,” said the President.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy informed Ben Wallace about the urgent needs of Ukraine’s defense forces in terms of heavy weapons.

The Head of State stressed: “Today the key priority for us is to quickly obtain heavy weapons. This is important in order to defeat the Russian aggressor, to restore the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”

During the meeting, the issues of security guarantees for our state were discussed separately. An exchange of views took place on possible ways to unblock Ukrainian ports to prevent a global food crisis.

For his part, Ben Wallace assured Volodymyr Zelenskyy of continuing defense support for Ukraine and stressed the importance of restoring the territorial integrity of our state.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 10 June 2022.

First Lady of Ukraine Olena Zelenska took part in the online format of the conference “Women in Conflicts”. The event took place in Brussels and was organized by the European Union together with the UN Women. The conference focuses on the situation of women at the epicenter of war, justice, and women’s leadership in difficult life circumstances. The first part of the conference was held in New York on September 21, 2021.

Olena Zelenska was invited to participate in the event by President of the European Council Charles Michel who has visited Ukraine several times since the beginning of the Russian invasion.

During the speech, the First Lady showed photos and told the stories of Ukrainian women related to Russia’s war against our state.

“I don’t want to and can’t talk about the war in the language of statistics and numbers. Fates are lost behind them. We already have real symbols of our war,” said the wife of the President of Ukraine.

The First Lady was joined by other female leaders, including Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili and 2018 Nobel Peace Prize winner Iraqi human rights activist Nadia Murad, a survivor of ISIS slavery and torture. She also co-organized the event.

The President’s wife also noted the great role of Ukrainian women in resisting the Russian invasion: “They cannot be called passive victims, each of them has her own story of resistance. Most of our doctors are women. 50% of our entrepreneurs are women, and they work to support the economy. There are 37,000 women in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. More than a thousand women have already become commanders. For example, history teacher Liubov Plaksiuk is the first Ukrainian woman to lead an artillery unit and is currently fighting in Donbas. There is such a popular question: what is your superpower? So, each of our women can answer: my superpower is that I’m Ukrainian! And this is no exaggeration. Our women are superheroes who are bringing the victory closer with every day of their lives.”

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 10 June 2022.

Head of the Office of the President Andriy Yermak met with President of Yahad-In Unum Father Patrick Desbois.

The meeting included an online conference with Andriy Yermak, Patrick Desbois and representatives of the Simon Wiesenthal Center on the investigation of Russia’s war crimes during the invasion of Ukraine.

On behalf of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the Head of the Office of the President thanked the representatives of Yahad-In Unum for their efforts to record the crimes of the Russian occupiers in Ukraine.

Andriy Yermak stressed that criminals who invaded our country must be punished, and this is fundamentally important not only for Ukraine, but also for the whole world. After all, other potential aggressors must realize that evil always loses, and criminals are punished.

“In the process of this work, your experience and your efforts to gather evidence and testimony are very useful for Ukraine. We will also find the experience of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, which hunted Nazis around the world, very useful. And it is extremely important for Ukraine to involve this organization in the work to bring to justice Russian war criminals,” said the Head of the President’s Office.

Andriy Yermak noted that today it is necessary to document every crime committed by the Russian occupiers in Ukraine and to draw the attention of as many representatives of the international community as possible to this.

The participants of the meeting stressed that humanity should have forever remembered the terrible pages of the tragedy of Babyn Yar, which took thousands of lives. However, today the Russian aggressor, who neglects not only the norms of international law, but also the basics of morality, continues to exterminate Ukrainians.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 7 June 2022.

Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak met with the ambassadors of the G7 countries.

He informed the heads of diplomatic missions about the results of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the frontline positions of the Ukrainian troops. Emphasizing that the Armed Forces of Ukraine have a high morale and motivation, Andriy Yermak drew attention to the quantitative advantage of the Russian aggressor in armaments and military equipment. He called on the ambassadors of the G7 countries to assist in speeding up the supply of the necessary weapons by the governments of their countries for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This should speed up Ukraine’s victory in this brutal, unprovoked war unleashed by Russia.

“We have a clear understanding that victory for us means the full restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity,” said the Head of the President’s Office.

He suggested intensifying work to raise awareness of partners about the defense needs of our country, in particular by holding regular briefings for military experts of interested countries, organizing visits of journalists to the front and more.

During the meeting the issue of post-war reconstruction of our state was discussed. Andriy Yermak informed about the initiative of Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which envisages taking patronage over individual cities or regions of Ukraine by partner countries with ensuring full control over the use of financial resources. The G7 countries were invited to actively participate in this initiative.

Andriy Yermak informed about the results of the expert group’s work on making recommendations on imposing sanctions against the aggressor, as well as on the state of formation of two more advisory groups – on post-war security guarantees for Ukraine and on reparations.

The importance of ensuring progress on Ukraine’s path to membership in the European Union was emphasized. The most important at this stage should be the decision of EU leaders at the European Council session on June 24 to grant Ukraine candidate status.

The participants of the meeting exchanged views on ways to restore full-fledged exports of Ukrainian grain, in particular through the Black Sea ports of our country.

The parties agreed on the importance of holding regular briefings for G7 ambassadors, in particular with the participation of senior government officials, in order to exchange views on topical issues of domestic and foreign policy agenda.

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 7 June 2022.

The financial resources provided by the EU, the United States and other allies of Ukraine to support our citizens fleeing Russian aggression in other countries should be used to encourage these refugees to return home. This is stated in a joint article by adviser to the President of Ukraine on economic issues Oleg Ustenko and professor at MIT Sloan and former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund Simon Johnson for the American newspaper Los Angeles Times.

“More than 6.5 million Ukrainians escaped the country and found amazing support in neighboring countries, including EU countries, as well as non-EU countries such as Moldova and Norway. Taking care of refugees is expensive — they need food, shelter, schooling, healthcare and other services. Many countries have also provided daily cash allowances,” the article reads.

Although part of this cost has been borne by philanthropists, the budgetary cost to EU governments is at least 60 billion euros per year (about 10,000 euros per person), as stated by the authors.

Some Ukrainian refugees, in particular IT specialists, continue working remotely even while outside Ukraine. Hence, they are able to earn income and support our economy. But many jobs in Ukraine still do not provide opportunities for remote work.

“Overall, on its current course, the economy is likely to decline by at least 40% this year compared with 2021 and, until the refugees return home, a sustained recovery is hard to achieve,” the authors predict.

According to the article, as of now, 30,000 people are returning to Ukraine every day. They can be productively employed to rebuild and repair the economy, but the government is hard-pressed to support them and their wages. The government budget is already running a monthly deficit of around 5 billion euros to cover war-related spending.

“That’s why it would make sense to have some of the EU financial support for refugees made available to them when they return to Ukraine,” the authors emphasize.

Oleg Ustenko and Simon Johnson name three possible ways to implement such support.

“One approach is to let refugees bring their cash benefits back with them to Ukraine for a limited period, such as six months. Another is to provide additional resources to the Ukrainian government to hire more people for rebuilding work,” the article reads.

Both these policies will pull more refugees home, but the process may be slow. According to the experts, easier and more effective would be for the Ukrainian government to use this funding, received from the EU, to create a temporary basic income program for all Ukrainians in the country.

“A modest cash grant program would help millions now struggling to feed their families stay in their communities and increase economic activity,” Oleg Ustenko and Simon Johnson noted.

According to them, if half of the more than 6 million Ukrainian refugees were to return home, European governments could significantly reduce their refugee spending and redirect tens of billions of euros into uses that would have long-term benefits for Ukraine. Any such program could be wound down as Russian forces are expelled from Ukrainian territory and the economy stabilizes.

“We don’t know how long this war will last. The devastation wrought by Russia’s invasion remains incalculable. Eventually, Ukraine, a country of around 40 million, will need international assistance and support to rebuild. Shoring up its economy and beginning that process should start now,” the authors conclude.