President Volodymyr Zelensky urged the European Union on Tuesday to decide to open negotiations on Ukraine's membership, while he received in Kiev the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen fifteen months after the start of the Russian invasion.
"The time has long since come to remove this artificial political uncertainty in Ukraine's relations with the EU. The time has come to take a positive decision on the opening of accession negotiations," he said at a joint press conference with von der Leyen. Ukraine's bid was approved in June, but the negotiation process is still a long way off.
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He also thanked the head of the European Commission after the EU's decision to provide "one million shells" of artillery to Kiev, before insisting on the timetable. "We discussed the key issue: the speed of supply and delivery of these munitions. We already need it on the battlefield," he added.
Ursula von der Leyen's visit to Kiev takes place on 9 May, Europe Day, which Ukraine is celebrating for the first time, in a desire to associate itself once again with the EU, detaching itself from its Soviet past. Until now, Ukraine celebrated, like Russia, "Victory Day", on the occasion of the surrender of Nazi Germany in 1945.