The Diplomat
Last Thursday, the ambassador of Ukraine, Serhii Pohoreltsev, visited the Autonomous Community of the Principality of Asturias, where he held a series of meetings with representatives of regional and municipal authorities, as well as civil society organizations.
In the city of Gijón, a meeting was held with Mayor Carmen Moriyón, during which a cooperation agreement was signed between the Municipality and the non-governmental organization Help to Ukraine. The agreement provides for the allocation of almost 70,000 euros in humanitarian aid to support the population affected by the war in Ukraine. During the meeting, the ambassador expressed his sincere gratitude to the city authorities for their solidarity with Ukraine and thanks to the founder of Help to Ukraine, Carlos Fernández, for his active humanitarian work.
With the mayor of Oviedo, Alfredo Canteli, the issue of support to the Ukrainian community was discussed. The establishment of twinning links with Ukrainian communities and the development of interregional cooperation were also discussed with the mayors of Avilés and San Martín del Rey Aurelio, Mariví Monteserín and José Ramón Martín Ardines, respectively.
During the meeting with Beatriz Coto Rodríguez, director general of the Asturian Development Cooperation Agency, the possibilities of expanding humanitarian collaboration and supporting projects aimed at mitigating the consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine were discussed.
During the visit, Ambassador Serhii Pohoreltsev stated that “Ukraine deeply appreciates the full support provided by the Government of Spain and the Spanish people at this particularly difficult time. A special thanks to the Principality of Asturias for its strong stand of solidarity, its humanitarian aid and for having created a welcoming environment for the Ukrainians who have found refuge in this region”.
“Ukraine is fully committed to the peace efforts and wants to end this war more than anyone,” continued the Ukrainian ambassador. “We have shown a constructive approach and taken real steps towards peace, while Russia only makes demands, imposes conditions and continues its aggression and terror. The first step would be to achieve a truce and cessation of attacks for at least 30 days to start negotiations, but it is not easy. There is little confidence in the way Russia acts. Greater international pressure is needed to force Russia to seek peace.”