ANKARA, June 17 — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with the leaders of Germany, Italy, France and Romania in the capital Kyiv on Thursday and discussed the ongoing war with Russia.
“Busy day. Important meetings,” Anadolu Agency quoted Zelenskyy as saying on his Telegram account.
“Pleased to meet President of France Emmanuel Macron, Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz, Prime Minister of Italy Mario Draghi and President of Romania Klaus Iohannis in Kyiv!”
“We appreciate your solidarity with our country and people,” he added.
Zelenskyy on Facebook stressed that their “key strength and most effective weapon” is unification.
“Ukrainians today are on the frontline of the fight against Russian attacks. But they’re not alone. And this is confirmed by today’s visit of Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz, Mario Draghi and Klaus Iohannis to Kyiv.”
During the meeting, the leaders discussed the continuation and strengthening of Ukraine’s defence, economic support for Ukraine and post-war reconstruction as well as counteraction to the food crisis and further sanctions pressure on Russia, Zelenskyy added.
“Particular attention was paid to the future of Europe and the European integration of our country,” he noted.
Zelenskyy also called on the European Union for the soonest accession of Ukraine to the bloc.
“Ukraine’s EU candidate status can historically strengthen freedom in Europe and become one of the key European decisions in the early 21st century. I believe that this decision will be our common historical success,” he highlighted.
Zelenskyy also thanked Macron, Scholz, Draghi and Iohannis for the negotiations, noting that they are preparing for “new important decisions to strengthen Ukraine and strengthen security in Europe.”
After the talks, the leaders addressed a joint news conference.
