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The Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset, met today, February 16, in Kyiv with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Andrii Sybiha. The parties discussed the importance of Ukraine’s accession to the EU. This was reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, UATV English informs.
Berset stated that Brussels is working on a concrete action plan through which Ukraine will be able to become a member of the EU. He called this plan the most ambitious.
“We are not just talking. We have 90 people working in the direction of Ukraine, and this office dealing with Ukraine issues is one of the strongest, and everyone knows about their conditions. They are devoted to the work, to your issues. They are working on the implementation of the action plan for Ukraine. This plan is the most ambitious in recent years. It is a decisive plan for Ukraine to finally become a member of the EU. Without the Council of Europe, without its support and without this plan, Ukraine will not become a member of the EU, so we are working to help you in this. We are negotiating the next plan, and for us it will be important to continue long-term support for Ukraine, and you can count on us,” the Secretary General of the Council of Europe noted.
For his part, the head of the Ukrainian MFA emphasized the importance of Ukraine’s EU membership for the European Union itself.
“But the most important thing is that Europe also realizes that Ukraine is needed by the European Union, that Ukraine will add a lot of advantages to the European Union — from security to strengthening Europe’s political-diplomatic and economic positions, for Europe’s self-sufficiency, for Europe’s strategic autonomy, for the defense sector. Therefore, it seems to me that this process is acquiring a practical dimension, discussions are ongoing. We had some concrete conversations with different visions and different formulas, but undoubtedly there is still much work ahead,” Andrii Sybiha stated.
The parties also discussed key areas of cooperation, in particular holding Russia accountable, the project activities of the Council of Europe, and strengthening Ukraine’s institutional resilience.
Earlier, Andrii Sybiha and Alain Berset held a meeting in Davos. The parties discussed the creation of a Special Tribunal on the crime of aggression against Ukraine, the work of the International Claims Commission, as well as other mechanisms for holding Russia accountable.
