President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky expressed gratitude to the governments of Western countries and international organizations for financial support to Ukraine.
“I am grateful to the government of Britain, the leadership of the World Bank, the government of Canada for taking new steps in financial support for Ukraine,” he said in a video statement on the night of Friday to Saturday.
He said “the day before, our state received $1.5 billion: $1 billion from the World Bank, another $500 million from the UK. It is direct budget support.”
“We use it to pay wages in the public sector. Canada was the first country to send funds to our administrative account with the IMF, this is CAD 1 billion,” he said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky believes that keeping Ukraine outside the EU, European unification works against Europe.
“The final stage of a large diplomatic marathon has begun, which should end in a week and a half. And we are in this marathon together with the European Union, on the same team,” he said in a traditional video message on Saturday evening.
According to Zelensky, “we will soon receive an answer about the status of a candidate for EU membership.”
“I am convinced that this decision can strengthen not only our state, but the entire European Union. What else needs to happen in Europe to make it clear to skeptics that the very fact of keeping Ukraine outside the EU, European unification works against Europe?” he.
For example, the president noted, “everything is obvious to the Russian occupiers, they say so when they mock our people, this is supposedly because Ukraine went to Europe. Where are the skeptics in Europe then?”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan plans to discuss the issue of grain export corridor with Ukrainian and Russian leaders Vladimir Zelensky and Vladimir Putin, the Turkish Anadolu agency reported on Twitter.
“Turkish President Erdogan said he would discuss the issue of grain export corridor with Russian and Ukrainian counterparts next week,” the statement said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that the European Union’s response to Ukraine’s application for membership will show whether Europe has a future.
“Now, of course, is a decisive time. Not only for Ukraine, but also for the European Union, for the entire European continent. Now it is being decided what the future of a united Europe will be like and whether it will be at all. Russia wants to destroy European unity, wants to leave Europe split and weak. All of Europe is a target for Russia, and Ukraine is only the first stage in this aggression, in these plans,” Zelensky said at a briefing with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv on Saturday.
That is why, according to the head of state, “a positive response of the European Union to the Ukrainian application for EU membership can become a positive answer to the question – does the European project have a future at all.”
Zelensky stressed that the people of Ukraine have already made a great contribution to the protection of freedom and values shared with the European Union.
“Thousands of Ukrainian lives were given to live in Ukraine and all of Europe as a person, to live freely. During such a brutal war, Ukrainians made sure that state and public institutions remain stable. Our people are absolutely integrated into the European space,” he said.
He also noted that polls conducted among the European population showed that people support Ukraine in joining the EU.
“And this is fair. And we are really looking forward to the recognition of this reality at the political level on June 23-24, when the historic meeting of the European Council for us should take place. Its logical decision should be to grant Ukraine the status of an EU candidate country. We really believe in this … The Ukrainian people will do everything necessary for the European integration of Ukraine,” Zelensky stressed, adding that “the European project definitely cannot be completed without Ukraine.”
EU, EUROPE, FUTURE, MEMBERSHIP, ZELENSKY
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that the world must always support proactive measures to prevent violence.
He said this on Saturday at the 19th Asia Shangri-La Dialogue Security Summit, answering a question about what can be done to counter China’s campaign of economic and military coercion against Taiwan.
“I think that today’s example of Ukraine is an example for the whole world. The world must always support any action related to pre-emptive measures so that there is no war,” he said.
According to Zelensky, “there is no positive from the war in the world. No one gets a positive, except for some political leaders who daily increase their ambitions because of their political appetite.”
“The world should decide everything diplomatically. Support states that need it. Do not leave this or that state alone with another state, which may be stronger financially, territorially, in terms of weapons. If problems can be solved by diplomacy, they must be solved,” he said.
“But do not turn on after the war starts, when there are tens and hundreds of thousands of victims. The war does not benefit anyone except the ambitions of some people,” Zelensky stressed.
According to Olivia Enos, senior political analyst at the Center for Asian Studies, the Chinese delegation left the hall during Zelensky’s speech.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said he was not ready to “ask” Moscow for peace.
“I am not ready to ask for the independence of our state. It already belongs to us, ”he said on Friday, speaking via video link to students and teachers of British universities.
Asked about possible peace talks, Zelensky said that “I understood all the years of my presidency that any war must end with a negotiating table.” “I understand that diplomacy can save people. I understand this, but, unfortunately, the President of the Russian Federation does not understand this,” he said.
Zelensky believes that “if Ukraine were in NATO, there would still be a battle for independence, but it would be different.” “There would not have been so many losses, there could have been a small military conflict or provocations, but we would have saved a large number of people,” he said.
