The Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk met with the President of the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Republic Lorenzo Fontana
07 September 2023, 17:11
“All the packages of military and technical assistance we have received from Italy are an extremely important contribution to the future Victory over the russian aggressor,” the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine stressed at the beginning of the meeting.
Ruslan Stefanchuk called on his Italian counterpart to continue supporting Ukraine, noting that Ukraine’s victory can only be accelerated if it receives continuous and timely supplies of weapons.
He also expressed his gratitude for the support of the President Zelenskyi’s Peace Formula, as well as for Italy’s agreement to restore the Transfiguration Cathedral in Odesa, which was heavily damaged by russian missile attacks on Ukraine.
The parties also discussed Ukraine’s future membership in the European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. Ruslan Stefanchuk emphasised that he counted on Italy’s support for Ukraine’s European and Euro-Atlantic path. “Ukraine has completed the implementation of seven points – we very much hope that this will be assessed by the European Union in October, and in December we will be able to start negotiations on Ukraine’s full membership in the EU,” said the Speaker of the Parliament of Ukraine, while expressing hope for the NATO Summit in Washington next year.
Finally, the meeting paid special attention to interparliamentary cooperation: “The Memorandum of Cooperation signed today between the Secretariat of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine and the Secretariat of the Chamber of Deputies of the Italian Republic is an important step in the development of cooperation between the parliaments.”