First of all, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine stressed that this meeting demonstrates the deepening of cooperation between the committees of the institutions, as enshrined in the updated Memorandum of Cooperation between the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the European Parliament.
The parties touched upon the launch of negotiations on Ukraine's accession to the European Union. “It is now important to approve the negotiation framework as soon as possible,” said Ruslan Stefanchuk. He said that for the first time Ukraine has proposed a model where not only the Government but also the Parliament will be present when discussing the negotiation framework: “This is the first stage of cooperation between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.”
The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine informed that subcommittees on European integration had been approved at the level of each committee in the Parliament of Ukraine, and a parliamentary office for European integration had been established: “Now every draft law undergoes an expert review before it is put to the voting floor.”
During the meeting, the interlocutors discussed cooperation between the committees of the Ukrainian and European Parliaments, expert support from partners, and the adaptation of Ukrainian legislation to European law.
In addition, the confiscation of russian assets is also in focus. “Our task, as parliamentarians, is to find a legal and practical solution to use the proceeds from immobilised russian assets for the needs of Ukraine,” stressed Ruslan Stefanchuk, noting that it is the russian federation that must pay for all the destruction and damage caused to Ukraine. He stressed that the recent approval of the relevant legislation by the Council of the European Union is the first significant step towards creating the grounds for using not only the proceeds from the immobilised russian assets, but also the assets themselves for the benefit of Ukraine.
The parties also discussed military support for Ukraine. The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine expressed his gratitude to the EU member states for the military assistance already provided to Ukraine. “At the same time, there should be no artificial restrictions on military and technical assistance to Ukraine,” said Ruslan Stefanchuk, outlining Ukraine's main needs – air defence systems, long-range missiles, modern combat aircraft, various types of artillery and ammunition, drones and weapons to counter them.
In conclusion, the Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine thanked the European Parliament for condemning the “elections” of the president of the russian federation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine: “These were 'elections' without a choice. These 'elections' are yet another demonstration of russia's continued blatant disregard for the norms and principles of international law. Ukraine has called for the results of these 'elections' to be non-recognised.”