Costa invites Zelensky to first European Council summit under his leadership

This was reported by Ukrinform with reference to Costa's invitation letter to EU leaders, published on Saturday.

"The situation in Ukraine will be at the forefront of our discussions. I have just returned from a visit to Kyiv, on the first day of my mandate. We need to stand with Ukraine for as long as necessary and do whatever it takes for Russia’s invasion to be defeated and international law to prevail," Costa said.

According to him, the December European Council summit is an important occasion to "send a united and unequivocal message of support to Ukraine, for a comprehensive, just and lasting peace."

“I have invited President Zelenskyy to come to Brussels on the occasion of the meeting of the European Council to share with us the latest developments on the ground and his views on how Europe can best support Ukraine,” Costa added.

He noted that the summit would focus on discussing the EU’s place in the world. “I believe that we need a comprehensive and strategic discussion, without written conclusions, on the way forward regarding our global engagement and priorities in a multipolar landscape marked by geopolitical tensions,” he said.

Costa stressed that the discussion with Zelensky should follow the traditional exchange of views between European Council members at the start of the summit. After that, the Council would hold a debate on Ukraine, where it would take stock of the situation and discuss “the best way to live up to our commitments to the Ukrainian people.”

According to Costa, the summit would be preceded by an EU-Western Balkans summit on December 18.

As Ukrinform reported, on his first day in office, December 1, 2024, European Council President António Costa, EU High Representative/Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas, and European Commissioner for Enlargement Marta Kos paid a visit to Kyiv, which had a very high symbolic and political significance.