Ukraine desires to affix EU single market: Volodymyr Zelensky | World News

Kyiv: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky mentioned on Thursday his war-scarred nation desires to affix the European single market forward of a call on whether or not to grant Kyiv full EU membership.

“For us, a urgent problem is the query of Ukraine becoming a member of the EU single market whereas we’re on the way in which to EU membership standing. I’m positive it is going to occur and it will likely be one in every of our nation’s most necessary victories,” he instructed a information convention with visiting EU chief Ursula von der Leyen.

Ukraine utilized for EU membership simply 5 days after Russia’s February 24 invasion.

The EU formally accepted Ukraine’s candidacy to affix the 27-nation bloc on June 23, in a robust sign of help.

Zelensky thanked von der Leyen, who was visiting Kyiv for the third time because the starting of the invasion, for her “private presence within the lifetime of our nation and your private help of Ukraine”.

The 2 spoke about Ukrainian vitality services repeatedly hit by Russian forces and a European vitality disaster as Moscow halts of disrupts very important provides. “We must always assist one another” on vitality, the Ukrainian president mentioned.

“We’re grateful for having joined European energy grids,” Zelensky mentioned.

“It’s in everybody’s curiosity: European international locations can get low cost electrical energy from Ukraine” and “we’ll be capable of get cash for salaries and social funds in such tough instances”.

IAEA board asks Russia to depart Zaporizhzhia

The UN nuclear watchdog’s 35-nation Board of Governors on Thursday handed a decision demanding that Russia finish its occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear energy plant in Ukraine, diplomats on the closed-door assembly mentioned.

The textual content, which says the board calls on Russia to “instantly stop all actions in opposition to, and at, the Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant and some other nuclear facility in Ukraine”, was handed with 26 votes in favour, two in opposition to and 7 abstentions, diplomats mentioned, including that Russia and China had been the international locations that voted in opposition to.

Nato: Finland, Sweden get Spain’s parl nod

Spain’s parliament ratified the entry of Finland and Sweden to the North Atlantic Treaty Group (Nato) on Thursday, bringing the 2 Nordic international locations one step nearer to becoming a member of the alliance in its most vital growth because the Nineteen Nineties because it responds to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Sweden and Finland utilized for membership within the 30-nation alliance in response to Russia’s February 24 invasion. Russia has repeatedly warned each international locations in opposition to becoming a member of the alliance and calls its actions in Ukraine “a particular navy operation”.

Nato allies signed the accession protocol for the 2 international locations in July. It should be ratified by the parliaments of all its members earlier than Finland and Sweden will be protected by the defence clause. Following Spain’s ratification, 5 international locations stay on the record and ratification may take as much as a 12 months.

The decrease home authorised the accession with 290 votes in favour, 11 votes in opposition to and 47 abstentions.