Brussels (Union)
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen confirmed that among their priorities is approving a financial aid package of 50 billion euros for Ukraine, which Hungary objected to. This came in statements to a newspaper from the Belgian capital, Brussels, yesterday.
“Following the historic decision to open accession negotiations with Ukraine, we must move forward with urgency to stabilize our financial assistance to Kiev,” von der Leyen said.
She indicated that “the European Commission will present practical solutions to the European Union Council regarding providing 50 billion euros in support to Ukraine between 2024 and 2027,” stressing that their priority is the consensus of European Union countries on this issue.
Von der Leyen pointed out that they, the European Union countries, are making preparations about other options. At the European Union leaders' summit held last December, Hungary objected to the 50 billion euro financial support plan for Ukraine, as it needed consensus.
Hungary opposes providing financial aid to Ukraine under the pretext that the European Union budget should support member countries, and that Western support for the Ukraine crisis has not yielded results.
European Union leaders are scheduled to hold a summit in Brussels on February 1, where they are expected to discuss providing financial support to Ukraine and making amendments to the European Union's long-term budget.
Meanwhile, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, discussed regional and global issues, most notably the Ukrainian crisis.
The discussions between the Turkish and Ukrainian presidents took place during a telephone call, according to a statement issued by the Communications Department of the Turkish Presidency.
President Erdogan assured his Ukrainian counterpart of Turkey's unremitting efforts to stop the bloodshed and establish peace in Ukraine, expressing Turkey's readiness to play the role of facilitator and host peace talks to establish peace in Ukraine.
President Erdogan added that Turkey is continuing its diplomatic contacts to restructure the “grain corridor” agreement, through the Black Sea, and activate it again.
During the call, he stressed the necessity of “reaching a ceasefire in Ukraine as soon as possible and opening the door to peace.”
In July 2022, the United Nations, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine signed the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement, with the aim of reducing the impact of the Ukrainian-Russian crisis on global food prices.
However, Russia announced its withdrawal from the agreement in July 2023, due to failure to implement its demands.
Thwarting an attack
On the ground, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced in two reports issued yesterday that Russian air defense units shot down missiles and drones in a series of night attacks over the Crimean Peninsula and the western part of the Black Sea.
A preliminary report by the ministry on the Telegram application stated that air defense units “thwarted an attempted Ukrainian attack” by intercepting 5 drones over the Black Sea.
A second report stated that 4 Ukrainian guided missiles were intercepted and destroyed yesterday morning over the Crimean Peninsula.
Ukraine has recently intensified its attacks on Russian targets in and around the Crimean Peninsula.
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