Ukraine Launches Kyiv Initiative as New Diplomatic and Security Format

In Ukraine, Kyiv Initiative – a new diplomatic and security format – was launched and united Ukraine’s immediate neighbours and close partners.

As the Office of the President of Ukraine informs, the first meeting of the new format took place in Kyiv with the participation of foreign policy advisors to the heads of state and government of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic.

The high-level event is aimed at strengthening the coordination of countries in matters of regional security and practical cooperation in countering security threats.

According to Head of the President’s Office Andriy Yermak, Ukraine today defends not only its independence, sovereignty, and the right to independently choose the future, but also the whole of Europe.

“Ukrainians die every day for our freedom and your freedom. Seizing Ukraine is not the only goal of the Kremlin. It wants domination in Europe. Its cruelty and appetites are only growing… The utmost and timely support from Europe will help us end this terrible war as soon as possible. This is the only way we will liberate the occupied territories – Crimea, Donbas. This is the only way the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov can once again become a zone of security, trade, and tourism,” Yermak believes.

According to him, Ukraine is ready to be a reliable bastion of the eastern flank of the European Union and NATO, and it is also in common interests for Ukraine to become a member of the EU as soon as possible.

The main discussion points during the Kyiv Initiative were:

• Course of countering the Russian threat and key needs in this regard
• Further sanctions pressure on Russia
• Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine as a point of growth for the entire region

The participants in format made a statement following the first meeting and strongly condemned Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified military aggression against Ukraine as a flagrant violation of international law, in particular the UN Charter and the Helsinki Final Act.

The partners reaffirmed the commitment to increase pressure on Russia to withdraw its troops from the sovereign territory of Ukraine and end its war against Ukraine, in particular by further strengthening restrictive measures and sanctions that would significantly impede the ability of the aggressor state to continue the war.

The event participants noted the importance of investigating war crimes and crimes against humanity committed against the civilian population and those who do not participate in hostilities in Ukraine, as well as bringing the perpetrators to justice.

Moreover, the participants confirmed their readiness for active cooperation to develop and implement a mechanism to compensate Ukraine for the damage caused by the Russian armed aggression and confirmed their political commitment to active cooperation and participation in the post-war reconstruction and modernisation of Ukraine.

The politicians expressed hope for the continuation of a regular dialogue on topical issues of regional security in the framework of the Kyiv Initiative.

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky called the Kyiv Initiative a promising negotiation format.

“This format will allow us to strengthen cooperation in the region, joint protection of our interests, primarily security interests. This is a very promising track of our work in the Euro-Atlantic direction,” the Head of State said.

According to him, Ukraine’s European neighbours are already participating in the initiative, but other countries will also be involved gradually.

Bohdan Marusyak