The Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines are waiting for decisions on increasing and speeding up the supply of artillery shells from the EU and will be grateful to every European country that will help to ensure that as many shells as possible will be delivered to Ukraine in the shortest possible time.
The Foreign Ministers of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba and of Portugal João Gomes Cravinho discussed this issue at the meeting in Kyiv.
“Today we held substantive negotiations on a wide range of issues. Portugal is one of our partners who does not need to be convinced that sustainable peace can be achieved by a convincing victory of Ukraine on the battlefield. We are grateful to Lisbon for the military assistance, in particular, participation in the aviation and tank coalitions, transfer of armored military and medical equipment, weapons and ammunition," Minister Kuleba said at a joint press conference with his Portuguese counterpart.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister noted that as long as the war continues, Ukraine will need the increase of assistance and the regularity of its supply. Therefore, today the parties discussed further military aid to Ukraine both at the bilateral level and through the EU mechanisms.
"In particular, we discussed ways how the European Union can increase the supply of artillery shells to Ukraine in the required quantity. There is a concrete understanding of what and how to do. We welcome the active position of the European Union in finding these solutions and have the sincere hope that they will be successful. I can say right now that the Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines are waiting for this decision and will be grateful to every European country that will help to ensure that as many artillery shells as possible will be delivered to Ukraine in the shortest possible time", Dmytro Kuleba emphasized.
According to the Minister, Ukraine and Portugal are on two flanks of Europe, but the Portuguese support is exemplary in many ways. Lisbon is involved in the implementation of all international initiatives of Ukraine aimed at countering Russian aggression. "I am personally grateful to João for his firm position in support of our state".
The parties also agreed to continue close cooperation on the implementation of the President Zelenskyy`s Peace Formula, in particular the involvement of new participants from Africa and Latin America. Minister Kuleba expressed his gratitude to Portugal for the practical contribution to the second point "Food Security" of the Peace Formula and the allocation of EUR 5 mln for the Grain from Ukraine initiative.
One of the key topics of the negotiations was the use of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine.
"We understand the course of discussions within the EU, at the level of the Group of Seven. We thank Portugal for its constructive position on the matter. We also expect the adoption of a decision regarding the income tax, the profits, and Russian assets as such. Russia must pay for the damage caused. This is legitimate and fair," said the head of the MFA of Ukraine.
The parties also discussed Ukraine's path to the EU and NATO. Ukraine is grateful to Portugal for supporting the historic decision of the European Council to start accession negotiations with Ukraine and the decision to allocate EUR 50 bln of financial support.
"We also discussed the steps regarding approval of the negotiation framework and convening the first Intergovernmental Conference which should start the negotiations. There is a clear understanding of the timeline and steps for making these decisions. We will move forward every day and every week," the Minister noted.
Dmytro Kuleba underlined that during the last two years the relations between Ukraine and Portugal have turned into a strong and reliable partnership and the parties will continue to maintain regular contacts at all levels, since this is in the interests of Ukraine, Portugal and Europe as a whole.