Zelenskyy meets Foreign Ministers of Czech Republic, Austria; discusses further assistance

The Czech Republic Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky and his Austrian counterpart Alexander Schallenberg arrived in Ukraine on 20 July. During their visit to Kyiv, Lipavsky and Schallenberg met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and discussed further assistance for Ukraine. Lipavsky and Schallenberg expressed willingness to help Ukraine with redevelopment work.

Zelenskyy thanked Austria and the Czech Republic for helping Ukraine amid the ongoing Russian offensive. He expressed gratitude to both the nations for supporting the decision to grant Ukraine the status of a candidate for accession to the EU. Zelenskyy expressed confidence that Ukraine will be able to meet all the requirements for EU membership. During the meeting, Lipavsky informed the Ukrainian representatives about the plan for fulfilling the priorities of the Czech Presidency in the Council of the EU concerning reconstruction, the European perspective and the resilience of Ukraine, according to a statement released by the Czech Republic government. 

Taking to his official Twitter handle, Alexander Schallenberg called it "devastating" to see the effects of Russia's war in Ukraine. In another tweet, he wrote, "None of us could have imagined today's bitter reality of inhumane atrocities and bloodshed on our doorstep." He lauded the resilience of the Ukrainian President and the people of Ukraine in their fight against Russia. 

Foreign Ministers of Czech Republic & Austria meet Ukrainian PM 

Meanwhile, the Czech Republic Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky called it "heartbreaking" to see the streets of Ukraine, including Irpin. Lipavsky asserted that the countries should not stop providing assistance to Ukraine.

During their visit to Kyiv, Jan Lipavsky and Alexander Schallenberg held a meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal as well. During the meeting, Lipavsky, Schallenberg and Shmyhal discussed cooperation in the energy sector, export of Ukrainian agricultural products and assistance in demining and recovery. Shmyhal also called on Schallenberg and Lipavsky to support the expansion of electricity exports from Ukraine. Furthermore, Jan Lipavsky and Alexander Schallenberg also held a meeting with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba. The talks between the three leaders were focused on imposing additional sanctions on Russia. In addition, Jan Lipavsky, Alexander Schallenberg and Dmytro Kuleba discussed Ukraine's economy and providing military equipment to the war-torn nation. Notably, leaders of EU nations have been visiting Ukraine ever since Russia launched a full scale military offensive against the country in late February. 

(Image: @a_schallenberg/Twitter)