On 15 April 2024, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation Oleksandr Merezhko and members of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation, together with members of the Committee on National Security, Defence and Intelligence, met with Minister for Foreign Affairs of Norway Espen Barth Eide.
The meeting was attended by MPs of Ukraine, the Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Foreign Policy and Interparliamentary Cooperation Arsenii Pushkarenko and Committee member Iryna Gerashchenko, the Deputy Chairman of the Committee on National Security, Defence and Intelligence Yehor Chernev and Chairman of the Subcommittee Oleksandr Fediienko.
The main issues discussed at the meeting were European politics and security, the current security situation in Ukraine, in particular on the frontline, military and technical assistance to Ukraine by Norway and foreign partners in countering armed aggression, military-technical cooperation and cybersecurity, demining of the liberated territories, energy security and protection of civilian infrastructure, release of prisoners of war and illegally detained civilians, and the return of Ukrainian children from russia.
The meeting also focused on the support of the Ukrainian Peace Formula by foreign countries, the provision of financial and economic assistance to Ukraine and the use of frozen assets of the russian federation to restore Ukraine's economy. Special attention was paid to the work of the parliament under martial law and the issues of Ukraine's European and Euro-Atlantic integration, in particular, support for Ukraine's accession to the European Union and NATO.
The members of the Ukrainian Parliament expressed their gratitude to the Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs for supporting Ukraine's independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity, and called for further increased assistance and support for Ukraine's membership in the EU and NATO.