Addressing the Italian parliament in Rome, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has said that for Russian forces “Ukraine is the gates of Europe, where they want to break in, but barbarism must not be allowed to pass”. He again called for more help to defeat his country’s invaders.
Zelenskiy warned that one potential consequence of the war was “famine that is approaching for some countries”. Ukraine had “always been one of the largest food exporters”, he said, “but how can we sow crops under the strikes of Russian artillery?”
In an interview with European broadcasters late on Monday, Zelenskiy said an end to the war would only be negotiated if he met Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, and repeated his acknowledgement that Ukraine could not now secure Nato membership.
Responding to the Ukrainian leader, Italy’s prime minister, Mario Draghi, said Ukraine had offered “heroic” resistance to the invading Russian forces and Italy would support its bid to join the EU, which Kyiv has long said it wants to do.
Draghi said EU accession was a lengthy process because of the reforms needed to integrate fully with the bloc, but added: “I want to say to President Zelenskiy that Italy is at Ukraine’s side in this process. Italy wants Ukraine in the EU.”
Russian shelling has reduced Mariupol to ‘ashes of a dead land’, Ukraine says
The EU has collectively imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow and agreed €1bn in financing for weapons for Ukraine’s military, but cracks are beginning to appear in the bloc’s unity over further measures, including a ban on Russia’s key energy exports.
Combined western sanctions have cut Russia out of most international trade to a degree never imposed on such a large economy, but exceptions have been been carved out for Russian energy exports to Europe, its biggest oil and gas customer.
Several member states insist they still rely too heavily on Russian gas and oil to be able halt all energy imports immediately. In an effort to cut EU consumption of Russian gas, leaders are also set to agree at this week’s Brussels summit to collectively buy gas, LNG and hydrogen elsewhere.
