Eduardo González
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, yesterday held a bilateral meeting in Brussels with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba, who thanked him for the “unwavering support of Spain” in the face of “Russian aggression” and in the decision of the European Council next December “on the opening of talks for accession” to the EU.
“Productive conversation with my good friend Dmytro Kuleba,” Albares declared through his official account on the social network X after meeting with the Ukrainian minister in the margins of the meeting of NATO foreign ministers. “I reiterated to him Spain’s firm commitment to the defense of peace, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine,” he continued. “Also our support for the opening of negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the EU,” he added.
“We have had a long meeting both on the situation in Ukraine and NATO and on EU enlargement and the negotiation process between Ukraine and the EU, given that Spain is now presidency of the EU,” Albares told the press at the end of the ministerial meeting. “I have conveyed to him, of course, the commitment to those decisions that we are going to have to take under the Spanish Presidency”, including the December European Council (which will address enlargement and the future accession of Ukraine and Moldova), and “Spain’s commitment to the opening of negotiations between Ukraine and the EU”, he added.
Likewise, he continued, “we have exchanged impressions on the current situation”, including “the military situation on the ground in view of the winter that is already beginning to enter Ukraine and the situation on the different fronts”. “I have told him that Spain will be with Ukraine as long as necessary and that it will receive, of course, our diplomatic, military and humanitarian support,” he added.
For his part, Kuleba reported through the same social network that he had met with Albares “to congratulate him on his new appointment and reaffirm the strength of the Ukrainian-Spanish partnership.” “I thank my friend for confirming Spain’s unwavering support for Ukraine in countering Russian aggression and also in the December European Council decision on the opening of accession talks,” he added.
During yesterday’s meeting in Brussels, NATO foreign ministers discussed support for Ukraine and reiterated their determination to support Ukraine’s path towards the Atlantic Alliance, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told a press conference. In addition, the allied ministers expressed their concern about the war in the Middle East and welcomed the extension of the truce between Israel and Hamas, which has led to the release of more hostages and the delivery of more humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.
