Four years after Russia’s full-scale aggression against Ukraine, Deputy Prime Minister Radosław Sikorski took part in a public commemorative service in Kyiv, alongside Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. European leaders visiting the Ukrainian capital on this symbolic day could see with their own eyes the destruction caused by the Russian four-year-long warfare. Ukraine’s Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko and Minister of Energy Denys Shmyhal showed the Combined Heat and Power Plant No. 4, devastated by Russian air strikes, to foreign delegates.

Kyiv hosted a meeting of the Coalition of the Willing attended by UE leaders, the president of the European Council, and the president of the European Commission, where Poland’s Prime Minister Donal Tusk was one of the speakers. Poland’s top diplomat, who was also present, stressed that our country supports every effort that could lead a peaceful resolution of the Russian–Ukrainian conflict but this will only be possible if we stay united and ready for mutual help:

As the Coalition of the Willing, we can offer greater defence support for Ukraine and work out security guarantees. Europe and our like-minded allies have many tools of influence at their disposal. We are able to leverage this potential, especially as our interests are at stake

- said Deputy Prime Minister Sikorski.

The head of the Polish MFA also met with Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha. Deputy Prime Minister Sikorski underlined that Ukraine’s future accession to the EU is an integral part of these security guarantees and that Poland will continue its efforts to open the EU–Ukraine accession negotiations based on the established criteria. The deputy prime minister also expressed his gratitude for the excellent cooperation within the framework of historical dialogue, which resulted in the recent decision by the Ukrainian side to grant permission for exhumation in Huta Pieniacka.

While in the Ukrainian capital, Deputy Prime Minister Sikorski also took part in the YES Yalta European Strategy conference. During the meeting, the chief of Polish diplomacy confirmed that Europe has allocated EUR 69.3 billion in military aid for Kyiv, and that the EU Military Assistance Mission for Ukraine (EUMAM), with a budget of EUR 362 million, has trained around 86,000 Ukrainian soldiers. The minister emphasised that thanks to international, united efforts of the allies, Russia has been removed or suspended from about 40 international platforms and organisations.

The deputy prime minister also visited the headquarters of the Union of Poles in Ukraine, where he handed over a power station and aid packages for a Polish–Ukrainian family. Minister Sikorski highlighted that Poles are demonstrating genuine solidarity with Ukraine. Our compatriots immediately responded to the energy needs after Russian attacks and provided assistance amounting to thousands of power generators. Following the decision of Prime Minister Donald Tusk and the leadership of the Ministry of the Interior and Administration, the Government Agency for Strategic Reserves allocated 379 power generators and 18 heaters from its resources, an additional 447 generators from EU funds, and another 90 from the city of Warsaw. More generators reached Ukraine through such public fundraising campaigns as “Warmth from Poland for Kyiv,” in which Poles collected over PLN 10 million. Thanks to the involvement of Archbishop Ryś, the Archdiocese of Kraków collected nearly another PLN 6 million to support our neighbours.