Ukraine, 24 April 2023 – Today, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas met with President Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine during the first foreign visit of her new term in office. The meeting was held in Zhytomyr and a joint declaration was signed during the meeting. Prime Minister Kallas also received the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 2nd Class, from President Zelenskyy, on behalf of the Ukrainian people, for her support to Ukraine.
“This is my first foreign visit as the head of the new Estonian government. I came here with a clear message that we believe in Ukraine’s victory and we believe in Ukraine, which is a prosperous liberal democracy and a free market economy that belongs to the Euro-Atlantic family,”Kaja Kallas said at a press conference after the meeting. “We remain committed to helping Ukraine win its war for freedom.”
Kallas expressed hope that one of the first decisions of her new government to send Ukraine artillery shells will inspire other countries to quickly implement the European Union initiative, proposed by Estonia, to procure one million artillery shells for Ukraine. “As President Zelenskyy has said, freedom must be better armed than tyranny. This is our common motto. Therefore, the aid focuses on weapons, ammunition and training – there must be enough for Ukraine to win the war,” Kallas emphasised.
In the joint declaration signed after the meeting, Kaja Kallas and Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasise that a strong, independent and prosperous Ukraine is essential for European security as a member of the EU and NATO.
“Your struggle, your losses and your sacrifices have made this crystal clear: the path to lasting peace is to end grey zones in European security. NATO and EU enlargement have increased stability – our region is a living example of this. Therefore, for peace in Europe, we need Ukraine in the European Union, we need Ukraine in NATO,” said the Estonian Prime Minister. She added that she would like to see Ukraine be able to start accession negotiations with the European Union by the end of the year if all the necessary conditions are met.
Kallas thanked Zelenskyy for inviting her to start the visit in Zhytomyr. “Zhytomyr is the region that Estonia has decided to help to rebuild. We were the first to do so. This is a very clear practical confirmation of our faith in Ukraine and in Ukraine’s victory. Reconstruction is not something which should be left for the future. We need to help Ukraine to start building their future already now,” Kallas said.
The Prime Minister gave the example of the Ovruch kindergarten, the first stage of the construction of which will be completed by 1 June. “I am pleased to announce today that we will be building a second section that will provide childcare places for 80 more children,” Kallas said. In addition, Estonia supports the reconstruction of the Malyn bridge and participates in the construction of orphanages together with the Olena Zelenska Foundation. According to the Prime Minister, all Estonian projects have been modelled in such a way that partners could easily replicate them elsewhere in Ukraine.
“Reconstruction, together with EU integration and reforms, can provide a significant boost to Ukraine’s economy. Ukraine has the potential to become one of Europe’s most successful economies in the future,” Kallas emphasised.
Also, Prime Minister visited a mass grave in the city of Bucha with Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko and received an overview of the investigation of Russian crimes.
“This place breaks my heart. The horrors of Bucha revealed to the whole world the nature of the Russian occupation, which Estonians and other countries in our region remember well from their own history. These atrocities are far from being confined to Bucha. The Russian leadership must be held accountable for the crime of aggression, genocide and crimes against humanity. Murder, rape and deportations must be seen as instruments of the Russian regime’s criminal policy against the Ukrainian people,” Kallas said.
According to the Prime Minister, in addition to the fight for freedom, Ukraine must also win the fight for justice. “We are helping Ukraine. We are working to hold the Russian leadership accountable for crimes committed, including crime of aggression – no one can be immune,” Kallas said.
Klymenko briefed the Estonian Prime Minister on the progress of the investigation and discussed the prosecution of war criminals. According to Kallas, this work has already come a long way. “We are on a point of no return. A year ago, it was thought unimaginable that Putin would be issued an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court. Just six months ago, most were not prepared to publicly support the idea of a special tribunal for crimes of aggression. Now we are discussing it at the level of heads of government and working on the legal modalities,” she said.
In the evening, Kallas is to meet with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal and Defence Minister Oleksiy Reznikov.