Ukraine: Opening remarks by the High Representative/Vice-President Kaja Kallas at the informal meeting of EU Foreign Ministers

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Dear President Zelenskyy, Dear Volodymyr, 

Dear Foreign Ministers, other ministers, 

Thank you for welcoming us here in Kyiv today. 

We meet at a dangerous moment. Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine shows no signs of abating, and the new war has captured the Middle East. 

Both wars are very much interlinked. Iran designed the drones that Russia is using against you and is mass producing now. Both Russia and Iran use them to attack their neighbours. In the face of this, we stand together.

You have just returned from the Middle East, where you signed a number of defence agreements, and Ukraine has the best drone defences. We were also witnesses to that technology today.

Your support to our Gulf partners underscores Ukraine's crucial contribution as security provider. Even in times of trouble, you take the time to actually help others. Drones must be countered with the right interceptors, and no one does this better than Ukraine. 

We all agree that the Strait of Hormuz has to be open, and it is a priority. Tehran cannot have a veto over the Middle East energy flows, and it cannot be a toll booth. But as Iran war claims the world's focus, we continue to support Ukraine. 

This means further sanctions to Russia and its enablers, choking off Russia's oil revenues, which includes decimating the shadow fleet and delivering the €90 billion loan to Ukraine. We must confront Moscow, not bankroll it. 

We all want this war to end. No one more than the Ukrainians themselves. Russia has been trying to gain at the negotiation table, what it has failed to win on the battlefield. But for peace to last, it has to be just. We all know that Donbas is not Russia's end game. 

This morning in Bucha, we were reminded of what is at stake. There is no starker example of Russia's brutality than what happened there four years ago. And Bucha is not an isolated case. It is an example of how Russia always wages war: mercilessly, unlawfully and without restraint. 

And it is also a reminder that giving up territories is not only about the land, it is also about the people that are living on this land. And this what is happening to these people on occupied territories, we saw in Bucha today.

Accountability is very important and central to lasting peace. That is why the European Union is advancing on setting up a Special Tribunal to prosecute those responsible for the war. The EU is also leading work on the Claims Commission so that the Ukrainian people can seek compensation for Russia's war destruction, and in the meantime, we are helping you in many other ways, including with support to Ukraine's energy sector.

But today, it is important for us to hear your assessment, Volodymyr, of the current situation on the front lines and on the state of play also of the diplomatic efforts. President Zelenskyy, thank you for having us and the floor is yours.