<h6><strong>The Diplomat</strong></h6> <h4><strong>The Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, participated this Friday in an international conference with her Ukrainian counterparts, Rustem Umerov, and Lithuanian, Laurynas Kasčiūnas, to discuss the end of the war and the future peace process in Ukraine.</strong></h4> According to the Ministry in a press release, the meeting was convened and organized jointly by the Ministers of Defense of Ukraine and Lithuania and stems from the commitments made during the First Peace Summit, held on June 15 and 16, 2024 in Switzerland, which was attended by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez. The objective of the meeting, which was also attended by representatives of the Security and Defense Committee of the European Parliament and the director of the cabinet of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, was “to receive information and work on all avenues that help end the war and move towards peace,” it added. In her speech, Robles warned that every day of delay in achieving a fair peace means suffering and dramatic human losses for Ukrainians and insisted that the longed-for peace must include the return of displaced Ukrainians to their homes, the withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine and the territorial reconstruction and restoration of Ukraine. The minister also reiterated “the firmness” of Spain’s commitment to supporting Ukraine. Before this videoconference meeting, Margarita Robles visited the Toledo Infantry Academy with Spanish soldiers who are training Ukrainian soldiers in basic combat skills and specific health care skills in conflict zones within the framework of the European Union Military Assistance Mission to Ukraine (EUMAN UA). The ‘Farnesio’ cavalry regiment makes up the bulk of the members of the training module that provides its service and experience at the Toledo Infantry Academy. On November 27, their six months in the capital of La Mancha will end, during which they will have offered training to 800 Ukrainians. Since the European Military Assistance Mission to Ukraine was launched, the Spanish Armed Forces have trained a total of 5,965 Ukrainians. “We are on the right side of history and can be proud to be part of something so important,” said the minister, who thanked the 131 men and women who make up the training unit “for their sacrifice and their self-imposed commitment to be able to face the specific characteristics of this mission.”
