As part of the Danish EU Presidency, Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre visited Ukraine on 1–2 October together with the EU’s Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Marta Kos.
The purpose of the visit was to strengthen dialogue on Ukraine’s European future and to support the country’s reform process on its path toward EU membership. The visit was also an occasion to demonstrate Danish and European solidarity with Ukraine during the official commemoration of the important “Defenders Day” in Ukraine together with the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
During the visit, the Minister and the Commissioner met in Kyiv with the Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko. On the agenda were the reforms that Ukraine has carried out under difficult circumstances, the state of the fight against corruption, and the next steps in the country’s EU accession process.
Programme highlights:
• Meeting with Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk and faction leaders of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine.
• An open discussion with NABU and SAP leadership and employees.
• Participation in the high-level opening panel “EU accession as a drive of Ukraine’s transformation” at the Kyiv School of Economics.
• Meeting with Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets and families at the Child Rights Protection Center.
• A visit to a recent missile impact site in Kyiv, where Deputy Head of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU) Oleksiy Migrin briefed on the 28 September Russian attack.
As the country holding the EU Presidency, Denmark is working to maintain momentum in the enlargement process and to ensure that Ukraine remains engaged in its reform path and in its fight against corruption.
“With this visit, we are sending a clear signal that Ukraine’s future is European. Ukraine has carried out impressive reforms in the midst of war. That deserves both recognition and support. Our shared security depends on Ukraine’s success — and on the EU living up to its promise,” says Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre.
The Minister’s trip continued to the city of Mykolaiv, which Denmark has entered into a special partnership with Ukraine to help rebuild. In Mykolaiv, the Minister met with Governor Vitalii Kim and a number of citizens, veterans and young people to discuss the importance of Ukraine’s reforms and anti-corruption efforts.
