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

The press release issued by the President of Ukraine on 17 February 2022.

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

Volodymyr Zelenskyy informed his interlocutor about the current security situation around our country, emphasizing that currently Ukraine sees no evidence of withdrawal of Russian troops from our borders.

The Head of State paid special attention to the aggravation of the situation in the area of the Joint Forces Operation observed this morning. In particular, he reported a significant number of violations of the ceasefire by illegal armed groups.

The President put emphasis upon the shelling of a kindergarten in Stanytsia Luhanska by illegal armed groups this morning and called it a big provocation.

“This situation has once again proven that the evacuation of OSCE representatives and diplomats from Ukraine is not appropriate. It is important that diplomats and the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission stay in Ukraine. Monitoring activities are extremely important. This is an additional deterrent,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.

According to the President, today the OSCE does not have enough resources to objectively record all the ceasefire violations that are taking place, including the current morning escalation.

The President of Ukraine and the President of the European Council mutually supported the position on the need to keep the missions in Ukraine and reaffirmed their commitment to political and diplomatic efforts aimed to unblock the peace process and restore stability.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy also thanked Charles Michel for the initiative to hold a donors’ conference in support of Ukraine.

The conversation took place before the beginning of a meeting of European Union leaders in Brussels chaired by the President of the European Council. In particular, Charles Michel will discuss with European leaders the information provided by the President of Ukraine.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked the President of the European Council for the constant dialogue and his efforts to consolidate the international support of our state.

Charles Michel reaffirmed the EU’s strong and unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as its Euro-Atlantic aspirations.