On 10 July, the Bureau of the EU-Ukraine Parliamentary Association Committee (PAC) held its meeting online. It was co-chaired by Pekka Toveri, Co-Chair of the PAC from the European Parliament, and Vadym Halaichuk, Co-Chair of the PAC from the Ukrainian side.

Pekka Toveri, on behalf of the European side of the PAC, expressed strong support for Ukraine against the backdrop of massive Russian attacks. He assured that European parliamentarians will continue to support Ukraine with even greater determination.

Vadym Halaichuk, PAC Co-Chair from the Ukrainian side, noted that despite heavy shelling, the Verkhovna Rada continues to function and perform its duties in full. “Thank you for your unwavering support for Ukraine. Of course, the situation in recent weeks and months has been extremely difficult due to Russia’s constant attacks on Ukraine. These attacks have become worse, more intense, with more missiles, drones and other deadly means. Now there are hundreds of them every night. Therefore, strengthening air defence is one of today’s priorities,” said Vadym Halaichuk.

He welcomed the election of members of the PAC Bureau from the European side and expressed hope that now, in its full composition, the body will be able to work in its regular mode and return to issues that had been postponed. These include reforming the functioning of the Parliamentary Association Committee in light of the newly established Subcommittee on Ukraine’s EU Accession. “So that we can plan its work together and define where we should focus. And in broader terms – the accession process and institutional reforms in the EU necessary for enlargement as a whole – this is undoubtedly the focus of our Committee and of this Bureau,” Halaichuk said.

Pekka Toveri stressed that the PAC Bureau must adjust its activities, as Ukraine is now an EU candidate country, which requires closer cooperation. Therefore, it is worth considering working in online and hybrid formats as well.

First Deputy Co-Chair of the Ukrainian side of the PAC, Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, also welcomed the establishment of the PAC Bureau on the European side. She expressed hope that this would allow for faster and more effective responses to challenges within this instrument of inter-parliamentary cooperation. She also drew the attention of her European colleagues to the intensified Russian attacks on Ukraine in recent weeks. Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze urged PAC Bureau members to appeal to the EU with an urgent call to accelerate the delivery of weapons to Ukraine. “This includes both air defence systems and the necessary weaponry for our defenders on the frontline,” said the First Deputy Co-Chair of the PAC from the Ukrainian side.

She thanked for the opportunity for Ukrainian MPs to contribute their proposals on reforms within the EU in view of enlargement. “It is important for us that the next wave of EU enlargement is reflected in the EU’s Multiannual Financial Framework. It is vital that financial instruments for enlargement are foreseen in the next framework. I hope that MEPs will be able to defend this idea,” Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said. She also expressed hope that the EU would find a way to revise its decision-making process. “I hope that the procedure for making decisions on issues such as opening accession negotiations can be changed from unanimous adoption to qualified majority voting,” Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze said. She emphasised that internal EU reforms must take place in parallel with enlargement, so that candidate countries already moving toward membership do not become hostages of unfinished reforms within the Union.

The parties also discussed communication on European integration both in Ukraine and in the EU. The Ukrainian side believes it is important to emphasise that in many areas and issues, Ukraine will bring solutions, not problems, to the EU. Ukraine has vast experience in security, countering propaganda, and other areas. At the same time, there are areas in which the EU itself needs to carry out internal reforms, as required by the integration of new members.

The Ukrainian side also drew the attention of European colleagues to the pace at which Russia is increasing military production. Deputy Co-Chair of the Ukrainian part of the PAC, Inna Sovsun, noted that next year Russia’s drone production will reach such a scale that it will be able to launch around a thousand drones per day in attacks. Inna Sovsun stressed that the EU, together with Ukraine, must work on expanding the scale of military production both in Ukraine and within the European Union itself.