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听听President. 鈥� Dear colleagues, it is my great honour to welcome to the European 合法博彩网站 our dear friend Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada. Welcome.

(Applause)

This month marks three years since Russia launched its brutal, illegal and unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Yet, as we enter the fourth winter of war, the world has witnessed the Ukrainian people rise up with courage, with defiance, with an unshakeable determination to defend their land and their freedom against all odds.

I am proud that this 合法博彩网站 has stood with Ukraine from the very first moment 鈥� united, unwavering and resolute. And our partnership with the Verkhovna Rada has been critical in deepening our ties with the Ukrainian people and preparing Ukraine for its path towards membership.

We will keep pushing for peace, but we must not let go of what we mean by peace. Peace must be just. Peace must be dignified. And it must be based on the principle of 'nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine'.

(Applause)

And for that Ukraine must be in a position of strength. And that means Europe must do more. More financial support. More military aid. More diplomatic pressure. More humanitarian assistance. Because we know that the defence of Ukraine is also the defence of Europe. This is not just an attack on Ukraine. It is an attack on democracy, our way of life, on Europe.

So, it is my great pleasure to give the floor to you, dear Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada.

听听Ruslan Stefanchuk, Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada. 鈥� (The following is a transcription of the interpretation of the original speech from Ukrainian into English)

Madam President of the European 合法博彩网站, dear Roberta, Madam Commissioner Kos, Members of the European 合法博彩网站, dear friends, I am delighted to have this great honour of coming back before you here in this Chamber. I already had an opportunity to address you here in June 2022. It was the eve of a historic day when Ukraine was granted candidate country status for accession to the European Union. And I can remember that day very clearly.

In particular, I remember the atmosphere of support 鈥� complete support 鈥� in this historic building, a building named after the French military nurse Louise Weiss. She was a legendary woman. She survived the horrors of both the First and the Second World Wars, and she decided to devote herself to overcoming aggression, influencing political processes and international relations.

And today, once again, I am greatly honoured to speak before you, to speak from this most authoritative rostrum of the European continent, to address you, Members of the European 合法博彩网站, and through you to speak to all the citizens of a free Europe.

I stand here before you as a representative of the Ukrainian 合法博彩网站, a son of the Ukrainian people. We are fighting and we shall prevail. We shall win. Therefore, Madam President, allow me to thank you for this opportunity. Dear Roberta, I really would like to personally give you thanks. Thank you for everything that you're doing for Ukraine and for Europe.

(Applause)

Dear colleagues, last year, elections were held here in Europe and they led to a renewed composition of this European 合法博彩网站. On the other hand, they also strengthened the fundamental foundations of Europe, committing ourselves to a united Europe, committing ourselves to common values and common principles.

Allow me, therefore, to say to you that both yesterday and today Ukraine may be tired, but Ukraine is undefeated and this undefeated Ukraine is deeply grateful to each and every one of you.

(Applause)

We are grateful. We're grateful for every vote. We're grateful for every resolution. We're grateful for every action you take in support of our struggle, a struggle for freedom and independence.

And, in particular, I would like to mention a resolution in this context. It's a resolution that deals with the need for continued European Union support for Ukraine, a resolution that you adopted on 17听July last year. Allow me to take this opportunity to express my gratitude for your support, the support that you have afforded to Ukraine in our struggle over the course of the last three years.

We're talking about more than 4听million Ukrainians who have been granted temporary protection status. And it was thanks to you and your colleagues that we were able to mobilise EUR听50听billion of military support for Ukraine and also for the programme entitled Ukraine Facility. The EU Military Assistance Mission to Ukraine has already trained more than 70听000 Ukrainian soldiers 鈥� my deepest gratitude to you for this.

Dear colleagues, in a fortnight, Ukrainians will commemorate for the third time the events of 24听February听2022, when early in the morning, Russia launched its massive rocket attacks targeting our cities and our villages, and where Russian troops began invading our territory, sowing death and destruction as they came. The war continues every day. Every night, innocent people are dying. Every day, children are fearing for their lives. They're afraid. Their mothers are grieving and crying. They cry for everything that they have lost.

Russia is inexorably trying to ruin our Ukrainian lands. Russia is making desperate attempts to move towards the west, towards Kyiv. But, dear friends, that also means that they are attempting to move towards Warsaw, towards Strasbourg, towards Brussels. And if Russia is not stopped in its tracks, it will only be a matter of time before Russian soldiers start kicking down the doors of a sleeping citizen in Budapest. This is what happened in 1956, remember. Or indeed targeting a citizen of Prague, which is what happened in 1968. And it's exactly what happened in Bucha and Irpin three years ago.

(Applause)

Please, dear friends, believe me when I say that the war is much closer than we might think.

In 1991, Ukraine became independent, and in 1994 our predecessors signed the Budapest Memorandum. And at the time, we thought that our trials were over forever. How naive we must have been. Today, we know perfectly well that history cannot be forgotten; all the lessons of history, old and new, can never be forgotten. History is not something we can take lightly. History must be well known and must be recalled, particularly when we're dealing with a history of aggression, occupation and abuse.

So the peoples enslaved by Russia, to what extent do they know this and remember this? Lithuanians, Latvians, Estonians 鈥� they felt it first鈥慼and. Moldovans, Georgians have learnt it. And I very much hope that they will never forget it. Because unpunished evil will continue to spread as long as we allow it to do so.

That is why, dear colleagues, I would say that peace can only be achieved if we stand strong. We have the power of our unity, of our determination. We have the power of putting consolidated pressure on the aggressor. And that is why each of us has a huge responsibility to bear for the fate of our countries, our peoples, for the fate of Europe, for the fate of a civilised world. Let's not forget that.

But, dear friends, the only way to stop an aggressive Russia and to achieve a just and lasting peace is to support Ukraine so strongly that the aggressor will not only be stopped in its tracks on Ukrainian soil, but also will face international sanctions and internal problems. We are well aware of the urgent needs of Ukraine. We need more air defence systems, more aeroplanes, more long鈥憆ange artillery, more electronic warfare equipment, more investment into the Ukrainian military industry.

So, dear colleagues, what I would say to you is that the more effective the sanctions, the better off we will be. Sanctions cannot be avoided or circumvented: more determination in seizing and freezing Russian assets. We need fair and clear punishment for the terrible war crimes being committed, for the air strikes, the missile strikes on civilians, the torture and murder of civilians, our unarmed soldiers.

Russia has crossed all the red lines imaginable in this war. Ukraine is a victim of this aggression. And Ukraine, like its partners, has never crossed any of those red lines. Dear friends, the only lines that we have to erase today are the lines of fear, the lines of indecision, of delay and despair.

Ladies and gentlemen, I will never forget that day three years ago, four days after Russia's full鈥憇cale invasion when together with President Volodomyr Zelenskyy and the Prime Minister of my country, I signed Ukraine's application for membership of the European Union. I am proud to belong to a nation that, despite this unprovoked and brutal aggression, despite these terrible losses, has set itself a difficult but vital task, namely to become a member of a large European family. Dear friends, we have set ourselves a task, a task to return to a common European home.

Dear friends, since the creation of the European Union, none of the countries that have embarked on the path of integration into the EU, none of them has paid such a terrible price for the legitimate right to be a part of the European family as Ukraine, what Ukraine has paid and continues to pay. However, I'm convinced that Ukraine will become a member of the European Union.

(Applause)

And furthermore, dear friends, I would say that we will become stronger. We will come out stronger and better after this war, because we're committed to a reform process. Because one of our most important tasks ahead of us is to open our first cluster of negotiations during the Polish Presidency. That will be an incredible momentum given to further progress. So Ukraine is not just expressing its desire to be a part of the European Union. We're also seeking to make it a reality.

Madam President, Madam Commissioner, dear Members of the European 合法博彩网站, the next phase will be crucial for the outcome of this war, for the future of European security and for transatlantic unity. Our task will be to preserve what brings us together to secure a just and lasting peace for Ukraine and Europe. Establishing peace through strength is the only way to stop the world's tyrannies.

Like three years ago, millions of Ukrainians today once again are awaiting with great hope for good news to emerge from the European 合法博彩网站 in Strasbourg, from Washington, London, Paris, Brussels, Berlin 鈥� news that demonstrates that we are not alone in this new and last war, that the war will soon be over because we have the strength, we have the justice of European and world democracy on our side. Dear friends, Madam President, neither you nor we can afford to not be there for this task. We must stand firm.

Dear friends, it is no coincidence that I mentioned the legendary Louise Weiss at the very beginning of my address to the House. She was driven by a sense of duty. She put on a uniform, and twice she stood up to defend her homeland as a military nurse and as a member of the resistance movement. She did so, as have millions of Ukrainians today. They are standing up to defend their dear homeland.

And owing to the current circumstances, I have twice spoken to this European 合法博彩网站 in this Chamber, wearing my military uniform. But indeed, just like my dear compatriots, I have a great dream to replace this uniform with civilian clothes. That is my dream.

(Applause)

My dream 鈥� our dream 鈥� is to replace weapons with tools to work. We also dream of replacing air raid alerts with smartphones. We hope no longer to have to have such an application for air raid alerts on our smartphones in the future. We very much hope that we can erase these applications altogether in future.

Dear friends, we want to replace war with peace. Once again, thank you for your kind attention. Glory to Ukraine.

(The House rose and accorded the speaker a standing ovation)

听听President. 鈥� Thank you, Ruslan. I will never forget those moments in Kyiv at the start of the invasion. I told you then that we are with you. And as you can see, we stayed with you and we will stay with you. Slava Ukraini!

(The sitting was briefly suspended)