On 18 February 2019, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin took part in the foreign ministers meeting in the format “Ukraine + Friends of Ukraine in the EU” in Brussels.
EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini and EU Commissioner for European neighborhood policy and enlargement negotiations Johannes Hahn represented the EU institutions. The meeting was organized with the assistance of Minister for Foreign Affairs of Denmark Anders Samuelsen.
Pavlo Klimkin briefed the participants of the meeting on Ukraine’s progress in implementation of key reforms, security situation in eastern Ukraine, consequences of the Russian aggression in the Azov Sea and illegal temporary occupation of Crimea.
The Minister expressed his gratitude to the EU Member States for their consistent support of Ukraine and unity of the EU in restoring Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He welcomed the political decision to impose the "Azov package" of the EU sanctions and noted the importance of further strengthening of political and sanction pressure on Russia in order to release Ukrainian sailors and political prisoners.
Pavlo Klimkin hailed the recent visit of the EU mission to the Azov region and expressed his hope for swift decision-making process on the implementation of new EU infrastructure and socio-economic projects to support the Azov region that is suffering from the consequences of the Russian economic blockade.
An important part of the discussion was dedicated to presidential and parliamentary elections in Ukraine and prospects of strengthening cooperation between Ukraine and the EU on protecting elections integrity from foreign interference. The participants also discussed in details further support to our country in tackling Russian military aggression.
The leadership of the EU and Member States noted the success of large-scale transformations that took place in Ukraine after the Revolution of Dignity and emphasized consistent support to Ukraine in restoring its sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as in moving forward the reform agenda.