PRESS RELEASE : Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a phone conversation with the President of the European Council

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 20 July 2022.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a phone conversation with President of the European Council Charles Michel.

The leaders discussed the situation on the front and the efforts of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to counter the aggressor and to liberate our territories. The President of the European Council condemned regular Russian missile strikes at peaceful Ukrainian cities.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine needs more modern heavy weapons to win. In this context, he thanked the member states for the approval of the decision to allocate the fifth package of financial assistance in the amount of 500 million euros in the framework of the European Peace Facility to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The parties discussed the introduction of the planned seventh package of EU sanctions. Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized the need for further significant strengthening of sanctions pressure on the aggressor country.

The Head of State thanked Charles Michel for his leadership in the issue of granting Ukraine the status of a candidate for EU membership.

“Ukraine will not stand still and has already started to actively implement the recommendations of the European Commission to move to the next stage – the start of accession negotiations,” he emphasized.

In this context, Charles Michel positively assessed the approval by the competition commission of the winner for the position of Head of the Specialized Anticorruption Prosecutor’s Office and the intensification of the selection process for the Head of the National Anticorruption Bureau. He expressed confidence that other recommendations would be implemented at the same rapid pace.

The President of Ukraine and the President of the European Council discussed the financial needs of our country to maintain macroeconomic stability. Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the European Union for its decision to allocate 1 billion euros in the framework of the new program of macro-financial assistance. At the same time, he expressed expectations for the rapid implementation of this program in full, which, according to the decision of the European Council, amounts to 9 billion euros.

The interlocutors agreed on the need to maintain proper political dialogue and discussed the holding of the 24th Ukraine-EU Summit this year.