European Union foreign ministers on Monday, October 2, gathered in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv for a historic summit outside the bloc's borders. The meeting took place as Kyiv pushes to join the EU in the future, amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine which is in its 20th month.
"We are convening in a historic meeting of the EU foreign ministers here in Ukraine, candidate country and future member of the EU. We are here to express our solidarity and support to the Ukrainian people," the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in a statement on social media. "Ukraine's future lies within the EU," he added.
"This is a historic event because for the first time ever the foreign affairs council is going to sit down outside of its current borders – outside the borders of the European Union – but within future borders of the European Union," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba told reporters alongside Borrell.
French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna said the meeting in Kyiv was a signal to Moscow of the bloc's determination to support Ukraine over the long term. "It is a demonstration of our resolute and lasting support for Ukraine, until it can win. It is also a message to Russia that it should not count on our weariness. We will be there for a long time to come," she told reporters in Kyiv.
Dutch Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot said it was "really important to meet here today to show our solidarity with Ukraine."
In 2014, Ukrainians staged a pro-EU popular uprising overthrowing a pro-Moscow regime. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has pushed for fast-track membership due to the Russian invasion.