On Saturday, 9 November, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha welcomed the visiting EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell to Kyiv.

The diplomats focused their talks on military support for Ukraine, strengthening energy resilience in the run-up to winter and further steps by the allies to implement the Peace Formula and the Victory Plan.

Andrii Sybiha expressed gratitude to Josep Borell for his comprehensive support of Ukraine in its struggle for freedom and independence, stressing that Ukrainians will always remember his historic role and leadership.

‘Thanks to Mr Borrell's leadership, Ukraine has remained and remains a constant priority on the EU's agenda. We hope that this approach will be maintained by the next European Commission,’ the Minister said.

The heads of Ukrainian and European diplomacy exchanged views on the US election results and agreed on the need to strengthen support for Ukraine. In this context, the Foreign Minister stressed that today the future of the European and global security architecture is being decided in Ukraine, and therefore everyone needs to realise that appeasement of the aggressor will not work.

‘It did not work in the last century and it will not work now. We need real peace, not appeasement, which will bring an even bigger war,’ the Foreign Minister stressed.

The Minister also added that a just peace in Ukraine is a guarantee of peace, stability and freedom in the whole of Europe.

Taking this opportunity, Andri Sybiha congratulated the German people and Europe on the 35th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and noted that this anniversary reminds us of one of the brightest days in European history of the last century.

During the talks, the diplomats discussed in detail the situation on the battlefield and the participation of North Korean troops in the war against Ukraine. The Foreign Minister noted that the DPRK's involvement in the war is a direct threat to the security of not only Europe but also Southeast Asia. The Minister expressed hope for strong decisions from the EU in response to this unacceptable escalation of the war against Ukraine.

In this context, Andrii Sybiha also stated the need to lift restrictions on long-range strikes against Russia and to continue building a multi-level air defence system to protect Ukrainians and infrastructure from Russian terror. He added that this system should include the capabilities of neighbouring partner countries.

The Ukrainian foreign minister thanked the EU and its member states for their continued military support for Ukraine, which has reached more than €44 billion. Andrii Sybiha noted the personal contribution of Josep Borrell to this assistance.

‘At a time when we were facing the most severe deficit, Josep literally every day stimulated the necessary decisions on weapons, on artillery ammunition. Ukrainians will always remember this,’ the minister said.

Andrii Sybiha expressed hope that the initiatives launched would be successfully continued. Among the most important of them, the Minister noted the further attraction of military assistance under the European Peace Fund and the Ukraine Assistance Fund, the supply of artillery ammunition, the use of Russian frozen assets for defence needs, training of the military under the EU Military Mission, the involvement of EU resources in demining, joint production of weapons and cooperation between defence industries.

The Foreign Minister informed the EU chief of diplomacy that Ukraine's defence production has increased sixfold since the start of the full-scale war and added that Ukraine's priority is the production of drones and long-range weapons, including ballistic missiles. In this context, he called on the EU and EU states to increase investment in the Ukrainian defence sector and stressed that this is a joint contribution to the overall European security.

Andrii Sybiha thanked Josep Borella for his personal efforts in introducing 14 packages of EU sanctions against Russia. According to him, the partners should work together on the fifteenth package of sanctions and strengthen sanctions against countries that support Russia's war against Ukraine.

When discussing Ukraine's accession to the EU, the Foreign Minister stressed that the European Commission had positively assessed Ukraine's progress and sent important political signals regarding the opening of negotiating clusters in early 2025. He added that the Ukrainian side is looking forward to their simultaneous opening.

Andrii Sybiha said that Ukraine has always appreciated the support of the EU and the personal commitment of Josep Borrell, and added that European unity and readiness to defend common values are the key to a common victory.

A special element of the visit was the presentation of specially selected archival diplomatic documents from the times of the Ukrainian People's Republic at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine. These historical memorabilia reflect the friendly nature of Ukrainian-European relations of that period, including active bilateral diplomatic contacts between Ukraine and European states.

Presenting the exhibition to his counterpart, Andrii Sybiha stressed that friendly relations between Ukraine and Europe have deep historical roots.

The MFA of Ukraine is grateful to the Head of the State Archival Service Anatolii Khromov and the Director of the Central State Archive of Higher Bodies of Power and Administration Larysa Levchenko for researching and preparing the presentation materials.