The Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, Ruslan Stefanchuk, held a working meeting with the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, Vera Bergkamp, ??and the Speaker of the Senate, Jan Anthonie Bruijn.
"You play a leading role in imposing sanctions on the aggressor, providing military, humanitarian, and financial support to Ukraine," Ruslan Stefanchuk thanked Vera Bergkamp and Jan Anthonie Bruijn. He also thanked the people of the Kingdom of the Netherlands for opening their homes today to 62,000 Ukrainians fleeing the horrors of war.
"Today is the 107th day of the terrible war in central Europe. And we must all understand one thing – this is not a war against Ukraine, but a war against Europe, European values ??, and principles. Today it is Ukraine defending these principles and values," Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed.
The Speaker added that these principles and values ??are essential because they unite the whole of Europe – the principles of the rule of law, equal treatment, respect for human rights, and recognition of the highest value of human life.
"Against us is a country that does not respect these principles and values. Its only task is to destroy the world order and impose its values, " said the Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine, emphasizing that one day of this war takes more than 100 of our soldiers killed and more than 500 wounded, including civilians.
"Ukraine is Europe. My visit here is aimed at talking to colleagues and convincing me that today such a decision is vital for Ukraine when Europe says that Ukraine has the right to be part of a greater Europe," said Ruslan Stefanchuk.
According to him, this should be a historic decision for Ukraine, which everyone is waiting for: the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, all Ukraine citizens, people far outside the country, and the military who are defending Ukraine in the trenches today.
"This is not just a decision that will be made on June 23-24. This is a great political impetus that Ukraine needs to hear," Ruslan Stefanchuk said. This decision could create a turning point in the whole war, which will give crazy motivation to every Ukrainian to fight for victory.
"Ukraine clearly understands that the decision to obtain candidate status is not yet a decision on obtaining the final status of an EU member. This is only the first legal starting point, after which you must go a long way. But Ukraine is ready to pass it with honor and does not need concessions," the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament assured, noting that Ukraine is ready to meet all the Copenhagen criteria and carry out reforms.
"Not only does Ukraine need this decision, but the EU also needs this decision. Today, 91% of Ukrainians support the path to the EU, while 66% of Europeans support this desire of Ukrainians," said Ruslan Stefanchuk.
The Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine addressed the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Vera Bergkamp, and the Speaker of the Senate, Jan Anthonie Bruijn, with a request to do everything possible to "fulfill the will of our people in our decisions, because I see great support for Ukraine in the EU and the Netherlands."
"I see positive feedback about Ukrainians living in families, about six million Ukrainians living in families across Europe. These people are absolute Europeans – highly cultured, educated, who are simply hiding from the war and have a great intention to return home," said the Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine.
Ruslan Stefanchuk also said that he had talked to many Dutch business people who, when asked, were not against the EU candidacy for Ukraine, as they were interested in Ukraine's 45 million markets. The same answer from Dutch farmers is that they want to cooperate with Ukrainians in the open land market.
"All of them say they are ready for such great cooperation.Today the whole world sees the role of Ukraine in ensuring global food security because millions of citizens worldwide may suffer from hunger due to the blockade of our ports," Ruslan Stefanchuk reminded.
He also stressed that the peoples of Ukraine and the Netherlands have always been together in both good and challenging times: from the football championship "Euro - 2012", when the Dutch national team played matches in Kharkiv, to the terrible tragedy of the downed "MH-17", when Ukraine has done its utmost to conduct an honest and open investigation.
"That is why today we need our trusting and friendly relationship to continue. We understand that we still need to make many reforms, but we are ready for this work. We are now insanely motivated. We want to end this war," the Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine said.
At the same time, Ruslan Stefanchuk raised the issue of a just sentence for putin and all his supporters in The Hague.
"Now is the time for Ukraine to admire the common and powerful decision of the whole EU… I hope that my arguments will allow you to convince your colleagues. You are the leaders in the Parliament. You guide a lot of deputies. I believe that our trusting cooperation will grow into a positive decision. This is decisive for us today," the Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine stressed.
Ruslan Stefanchuk said that he was proud of his Parliament, every People's Deputy, and every person from the people of Ukraine.
"We meet weekly and pass the necessary laws for the state," the politician said.
Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed that he wanted to convey this to colleagues. Today is the war in Ukraine, but we must all understand that the war is in Europe. Because Russia is never waging a hybrid war - first it penetrates the country with information and propaganda resources, then energy resources, sponsoring policies in these countries, and only then invades the country militarily, "- said the Speaker of Parliament and added that now Ukraine the third stage, but almost all of Europe - in the second.
"None of us will give an exact guarantee and the number when it will move from the second stage to the third. And so, as pathetic as it may be, Europe's hope is now in Ukraine. And the more Ukraine endures, the more Europe will hold on, ”Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed.
"We can't change geography, but we can change history. But we can't do it ourselves; we need your support. This is a critical decision for Ukrainians, so I ask you to pay maximum attention to its adoption, " the Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine said.
For her part, the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the General States of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Vera Bergkamp, assured that she clearly understood the messages from the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
"Be assured that we have heard your message clearly and will do our best to discrete this message to our politicians and colleagues in parliament," said Vera Bergkamp.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives of the General States of the Kingdom of the Netherlands expressed her heartfelt condolences to all the people in Ukraine.
"The situation is still terrible. An attack on Ukraine is not just an attack on your country. It is an attack on peace, security, and democracy, " Vera Bergkamp said.
The President of the Senate of the General States of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Jan Anthonie Bruijn, said that the Russian invasion of Ukraine had deeply affected everyone.
"The fact that the war in Europe is not the past, but the present, confuses us all," said Jan Anthonie Bruijn.
He expressed his solidarity with the Ukrainian people and admiration for the resilience and strength of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the civilians.
"Today is the 107th day of the terrible war in central Europe. And we must all understand one thing – this is not a war against Ukraine, but a war against Europe, European values ??, and principles. Today it is Ukraine defending these principles and values," Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed.
The Speaker added that these principles and values ??are essential because they unite the whole of Europe – the principles of the rule of law, equal treatment, respect for human rights, and recognition of the highest value of human life.
"Against us is a country that does not respect these principles and values. Its only task is to destroy the world order and impose its values, " said the Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine, emphasizing that one day of this war takes more than 100 of our soldiers killed and more than 500 wounded, including civilians.
"Ukraine is Europe. My visit here is aimed at talking to colleagues and convincing me that today such a decision is vital for Ukraine when Europe says that Ukraine has the right to be part of a greater Europe," said Ruslan Stefanchuk.
According to him, this should be a historic decision for Ukraine, which everyone is waiting for: the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, all Ukraine citizens, people far outside the country, and the military who are defending Ukraine in the trenches today.
"This is not just a decision that will be made on June 23-24. This is a great political impetus that Ukraine needs to hear," Ruslan Stefanchuk said. This decision could create a turning point in the whole war, which will give crazy motivation to every Ukrainian to fight for victory.
"Ukraine clearly understands that the decision to obtain candidate status is not yet a decision on obtaining the final status of an EU member. This is only the first legal starting point, after which you must go a long way. But Ukraine is ready to pass it with honor and does not need concessions," the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament assured, noting that Ukraine is ready to meet all the Copenhagen criteria and carry out reforms.
"Not only does Ukraine need this decision, but the EU also needs this decision. Today, 91% of Ukrainians support the path to the EU, while 66% of Europeans support this desire of Ukrainians," said Ruslan Stefanchuk.
The Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine addressed the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Vera Bergkamp, and the Speaker of the Senate, Jan Anthonie Bruijn, with a request to do everything possible to "fulfill the will of our people in our decisions, because I see great support for Ukraine in the EU and the Netherlands."
"I see positive feedback about Ukrainians living in families, about six million Ukrainians living in families across Europe. These people are absolute Europeans – highly cultured, educated, who are simply hiding from the war and have a great intention to return home," said the Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine.
Ruslan Stefanchuk also said that he had talked to many Dutch business people who, when asked, were not against the EU candidacy for Ukraine, as they were interested in Ukraine's 45 million markets. The same answer from Dutch farmers is that they want to cooperate with Ukrainians in the open land market.
"All of them say they are ready for such great cooperation.Today the whole world sees the role of Ukraine in ensuring global food security because millions of citizens worldwide may suffer from hunger due to the blockade of our ports," Ruslan Stefanchuk reminded.
He also stressed that the peoples of Ukraine and the Netherlands have always been together in both good and challenging times: from the football championship "Euro - 2012", when the Dutch national team played matches in Kharkiv, to the terrible tragedy of the downed "MH-17", when Ukraine has done its utmost to conduct an honest and open investigation.
"That is why today we need our trusting and friendly relationship to continue. We understand that we still need to make many reforms, but we are ready for this work. We are now insanely motivated. We want to end this war," the Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine said.
At the same time, Ruslan Stefanchuk raised the issue of a just sentence for putin and all his supporters in The Hague.
"Now is the time for Ukraine to admire the common and powerful decision of the whole EU… I hope that my arguments will allow you to convince your colleagues. You are the leaders in the Parliament. You guide a lot of deputies. I believe that our trusting cooperation will grow into a positive decision. This is decisive for us today," the Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine stressed.
Ruslan Stefanchuk said that he was proud of his Parliament, every People's Deputy, and every person from the people of Ukraine.
"We meet weekly and pass the necessary laws for the state," the politician said.
Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed that he wanted to convey this to colleagues. Today is the war in Ukraine, but we must all understand that the war is in Europe. Because Russia is never waging a hybrid war - first it penetrates the country with information and propaganda resources, then energy resources, sponsoring policies in these countries, and only then invades the country militarily, "- said the Speaker of Parliament and added that now Ukraine the third stage, but almost all of Europe - in the second.
"None of us will give an exact guarantee and the number when it will move from the second stage to the third. And so, as pathetic as it may be, Europe's hope is now in Ukraine. And the more Ukraine endures, the more Europe will hold on, ”Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed.
"We can't change geography, but we can change history. But we can't do it ourselves; we need your support. This is a critical decision for Ukrainians, so I ask you to pay maximum attention to its adoption, " the Chairman of The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine said.
For her part, the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the General States of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Vera Bergkamp, assured that she clearly understood the messages from the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
"Be assured that we have heard your message clearly and will do our best to discrete this message to our politicians and colleagues in parliament," said Vera Bergkamp.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives of the General States of the Kingdom of the Netherlands expressed her heartfelt condolences to all the people in Ukraine.
"The situation is still terrible. An attack on Ukraine is not just an attack on your country. It is an attack on peace, security, and democracy, " Vera Bergkamp said.
The President of the Senate of the General States of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Jan Anthonie Bruijn, said that the Russian invasion of Ukraine had deeply affected everyone.
"The fact that the war in Europe is not the past, but the present, confuses us all," said Jan Anthonie Bruijn.
He expressed his solidarity with the Ukrainian people and admiration for the resilience and strength of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and the civilians.
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