First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Oleksandr Korniienko held a meeting with Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia Borut Sajovic.
The event was also attended by the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Modern Information Technologies and Innovations in the Budget Process of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Budgetary Issues, Denys Herman (Co-Chair of the Interparliamentary Relations Group with the Republic of Slovenia), Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Policy and International Cooperation Arsenii Pushkarenko (Deputy Co-Chair of the Interparliamentary Relations Group with the Republic of Slovenia) and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Republic of Slovenia Petro Beshta.
Oleksandr Korniienko expressed his sincere gratitude to Slovenia for its multi-level support to Ukraine in strengthening its defence capabilities and protecting its sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as for the warm welcome during the November visit of the Ukrainian parliamentary delegation and the friendship group with Slovenia in 2025. According to him, the meetings gave a productive impetus to the development of interparliamentary relations and will contribute to further cooperation between the committees of both parliaments on issues of defence and European integration of Ukraine.
The First Deputy Speaker also noted the importance of Slovenia's accession to the PURL initiative, which could serve as an example for other NATO partners that have not yet joined. At the same time, he emphasised the real potential for expanding bilateral military-technical cooperation.
«Defence support remains a priority. In addition, we raised the issue of russia's inevitability of responsibility for the crimes committed on the territory of our state,» Oleksandr Korniienko noted.
The visit of Borut Sajovic, Minister of Defence of the Republic of Slovenia, to Ukraine took place against the backdrop of intensified russian attacks on our country's energy infrastructure. In this regard, the parties discussed strengthening Ukraine's air defence, as well as protecting the civilian population and critical infrastructure.
A particular topic of discussion was Ukraine's European aspirations and ambitious goals to complete preparations for accession to the European Union. The First Deputy Speaker noted Ukraine's readiness to carry out the necessary reforms and thanked Slovenia for supporting our country on its path to European integration.
