The European Union's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, said at a Feb. 19 conference that he urged member states to procure ammunition for Ukraine outside the bloc if this source of supply is "better, cheaper, and quicker."
Russia forces are "taking advantage" of Western allies' delays in providing Ukraine with additional military aid, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address on Feb. 19.
Editor’s note: The following piece is a personal account of the Munich Security Conference from a Kyiv Independent reporter but does not purport to reflect the views of the publication. MUNICH – For three days every year, the space in front of the Bayerischer Hof Hotel in central Munich turns
Speaking at a panel discussion on EU defense priorities at the Munich Security Conference on Feb. 18, the EU's chief diplomat Josep Borrell criticized Western allies' initial indecisiveness in providing military assistance to Ukraine, suggesting that the outcome of the war "would have been different" had allies acted more decisively.
Hungary has blocked the approval of the European Union’s latest package of sanctions against Russia due to the presence of Chinese companies in the list, the Financial Times (FT) reported on Feb. 15, citing unnamed European officials.
Estonia announced that the country may be forced to close its border crossing points with Russia due to increased migration pressures, Estonian Police and Border Guard announced on Feb. 13.
Protesters will obstruct a highway in Prague on Feb. 19 to bring attention to the demands of Czech farmers, who say EU policies and imports from Ukraine are hurting the agriculture sector.
Polish farmers have again taken to the border with neighboring Ukraine in their new month-long strike against EU policies and unfair competition from abroad. The Solidarity trade union announced on Feb. 9 that it would begin blocking roads and border crossings with Ukraine until March 10. The group then announced
The European Council said on Feb. 12 that central securities depositaries (CSDs) holding more than 1 million euros ($1.07 million) in assets from the Russian Central Bank must separate any profits generated from the primary accounts.
The European Commission earlier proposed caps on the "most sensitive" Ukrainian food products, namely sugar, poultry, and eggs.
It is necessary to explain to European citizens before the June parliamentary elections what it would mean to see Ukraine defeated and the Russian army move to EU borders, said Josep Borrell, the EU's chief diplomat, in an interview with EuroEFE published on Feb. 9.
President Volodymyr Zelensky and European Union's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell met in Kyiv on Feb. 7 to discuss security cooperation between Kyiv and the EU and ammunition deliveries to Ukraine, among other topics, the Presidential Office reported.
"We highly appreciate the military assistance of the EU," said Shmyhal, who held a joint press conference with Borrell. "The European defense industry is building up its capabilities, and I'm sure we'll feel it soon."
Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba thanked his Portuguese counterpart, Joao Cravinho, for his "personal firm position in support of Ukraine" and said the two discussed Ukraine's peace formula, Ukraine's accession into NATO and the EU, and further Portuguese military assistance.
"Last night’s political agreement on the 50 billion euro ($54 billion) Ukraine Facility is a major step forward," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Feb. 6.
Josep Borrell, the EU's chief diplomat, arrived in Kyiv on Feb. 6, media reported. This is Borrell's fourth visit to Ukraine since the outbreak of the full-scale war.
The European Parliament and the Council of the EU had concluded a preliminary agreement on the Ukraine Facility of 50 billion euros ($54 billion), the Council's press service said on Feb. 6.
Countries like France and Germany with existing military-industrial capacity would like to see a shift away from the reimbursement model to the EU directly funding arms contracts and are pushing for such a transition to occur quickly.
When European leaders agreed to Ukraine’s accession talks in December 2023, the historic move was hailed in Kyiv as a recognition of years of struggle to get closer to the bloc since the EuroMaidan Revolution. The agreement came after a European Commission decision in November 2023 recommending talks begin
"But it's not a substitute for American leadership when it comes to security assistance. And that is why it’s so critical for us to continue to urge Congress to pass that national security supplemental," U.S. National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said.
The aid deal includes a provision for a yearly discussion on the package and the potential to review it in two years "if needed," but there is no explicit veto for Hungary or any other member state.
All 27 leaders of EU member states agreed on an additional 50 billion euro support package for Ukraine within the EU budget, European Council President Charles Michel announced on Feb. 1.
The 26 European Union member states are determined to overcome Hungary's objections and move forward with several key priorities for Ukraine in one of the most "complex, complicated, and difficult European Councils."
In total, 78% of Ukrainians would vote to join the EU if a referendum were held now and 77% are in favor of joining NATO, according to a poll released by the Rating Sociology Group on Nov. 29.
The proposed move would help increase the compatibility of Ukraine's parliament with European institutions, Chairman Ruslan Stefanchuk said, and would allow Ukrainian lawmakers to observe the operations and functions of the European Parliament.
Nearly two decades after launching his far-right political party, mixing xenophobia with Euroskepticism, Geert Wilders emerged as the winner of the Dutch parliamentary elections on Nov. 22. "The winds of change are here," said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, after potentially receiving one more ally. Wilders' Ukraine-skeptic and anti-immigration Party
Ten years after Ukrainians took to the streets their dissatisfaction with what many saw as a nail into the coffin of the country's European future, the European Council president was in Kyiv promising that Ukraine would soon begin accession talks. "My goal is to do everything to make a positive
The proposed measures will be discussed with EU ambassadors in the upcoming week, Bloomberg said, and with senior EU leadership in December.
Ukraine's parliament passed in the first reading a draft law to increase the staff of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) from 700 to 1,000, lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak said on Nov. 21.
Episode #33 is dedicated to Ukraine’s recent successes in its decade-long journey towards the European Union.
The European Commission’s historic decision on Nov. 8 recommending formal talks on Ukraine’s EU membership may be a milestone, but political hurdles, reforms, and years of negotiations still await before the country can finally join. After applying for EU membership on Feb. 28, 2022, just four days after
Ukraine is now one step closer to its strategic goal of becoming a member of the European Union. On Nov. 8, the European Commission published its annual enlargement report. In it, the commission confirmed that Ukraine had completed enough of the steps laid out in seven recommendations it received from
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