The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine met with the President of the German Bundestag Barbel Bas and the President of the German Bundesrat Peter Tschentscher on the sidelines of the Conference of the Presidents of the Parliaments of the EU Member States.
Ruslan Stefanchuk thanked the sincere friends of Ukraine for their constant powerful assistance, for their leading role in important issues for the victory of our country in this cruel and unprovoked war.
In particular, the Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament stressed that Germany has already provided a lot of weapons and equipment that often decide the issue of victory on the battlefield in favour of Ukraine.
“German weapons continue to save Ukrainian lives. I hope that in the near future it will also help liberate our territories and people. I thank you for such a high level of mutual trust and relations,” Ruslan Stefanchuk said.
The main focus of the meeting was on strategic issues for Ukraine, namely Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO. The Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament called on Germany to adopt a resolution in support of Ukraine’s application for membership in the Alliance, which would be a powerful sign of interparliamentary cooperation on the part of the Bundestag for the Ukrainian Parliament and the Ukrainian people.
The parties also discussed extremely important issues for Ukraine: the issue of justice, in which Ruslan Stefanchuk called on his German colleagues to approve a cross-party resolution in support of the creation of a special tribunal for russia to bring it to justice for the crime of aggression against Ukraine; the issue of Germany’s support for President Zelenskyi’s peace formula and the implementation of its individual points.
They also discussed the reconstruction of Ukraine. The Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine thanked Germany for the assistance already provided, noting that Ukraine relies on Germany’s continued support in restoring and reconstructing the infrastructure destroyed by the war.
The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine also thanked his German colleagues for the decision to recognise the Holodomor of 1932-33 as genocide of the Ukrainian people.
“I am grateful that the Bundestag responded and adopted this resolution. This is a confirmation of the historical justice of what happened. We are convinced that, just as we have now brought the russians to historical responsibility for the Holodomor, we will soon bring them to justice for all the atrocities and genocide they are committing today,” Ruslan Stefanchuk said.
The President of the German Bundestag, Barbel Bas, noted that Germany, and the Bundestag in particular, will continue to look for the best solutions to help Ukraine.
In addition, she noted that today’s meeting is of great strategic importance, as the Bundesrat represents 16 federal states of Germany, which have a great influence in decision-making on assistance to Ukraine, humanitarian, financial and military support, as well as support for Ukrainian citizens currently residing in Germany.
She also assured the Chairperson of the Ukrainian Parliament that the Bundestag would discuss Ukraine’s progress towards the EU and NATO.
“The NATO summit in Vilnius will be held soon, and we will also discuss the issue of Ukraine. Along with EU integration, this is a very important path for you and we will do our best to help you. After all, even when we achieve peace, we need security guarantees for Ukraine,” said Barbel Bas.
For his part, the President of the German Bundesrat Peter Tschentscher expressed hope for fruitful cooperation with the Parliament of Ukraine on a number of issues, including the future reconstruction of Ukraine. Germany is ready to implement practical projects to restore and rebuild the infrastructure of specific cities in our country.