Our priority task is to create an air “shield” to counter russian missile terror
Our top priority is to create an air shield to counter russian missile terror. This was emphasised by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk during a video conference with the President of the Storting (Parliament) of the Kingdom of Norway Masud Gharahkhani.
Ruslan Stefanchuk, represented by the head of the Norwegian Parliament, thanked Norway for the crucial military, financial and humanitarian assistance provided to our country throughout the period of russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. According to the Ukrainian Speaker, the military support is especially valuable for us, as it has been and remains a priority for Ukraine.
“Our top priority is to create an air shield to counter russian missile terror. To defend the sky, Ukraine needs modern missile and air defence systems, artillery and ammunition, heavy military equipment, tanks and aircraft. And here we hope for further defence support for the Armed Forces of Ukraine not only from Norway, but also from all our global partners,” Ruslan Stefanchuk stressed.
The Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament also stressed the need and importance of developing interparliamentary relations between the two legislative institutions. In particular, he emphasised the need to strengthen the interaction between the parliamentary friendship groups of the Ukrainian Parliament and the Storting, whose cooperation can become a powerful symbol of the strength of the interparliamentary bilateral process. In addition, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada invited his Norwegian colleague to participate in the upcoming II International Parliamentary Summit of the Crimean Platform, which is to be held this year in Prague.
During the conversation, the leaders of the parliaments also discussed the participation of the Norwegian Storting in decision-making important for Ukraine and its future victory. In particular, Ruslan Stefanchuk called on the Norwegian Parliament to recognise russia as a terrorist state, to recognise the Holodomor of 1932-33 as an act of genocide against the Ukrainian people and to support the construction of the Holodomor Memorial in Oslo.
Separately, the parties focused on strengthening sanctions pressure against russia and adopting a new package of sanctions that would limit russia’s circumvention of them through third countries.
In addition, Ruslan Stefanchuk called on Norway to join the creation of an independent international tribunal for the russian leadership and all those involved in the atrocities and crimes committed in Ukraine.
“There is no crime that russia has not committed on the territory of Ukraine. The establishment of an independent international tribunal will lay the foundation for the process of bringing russia’s top political and military leadership to justice for unleashing the war,” stressed Ruslan Stefanchuk.
One of the main issues of the conversation was Norway’s support for Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic aspirations.
“I encourage Norway to contribute by all means to reaching a consensus in support of our NATO membership application. An important step could be the signing of a joint declaration on Ukraine’s Euro-Atlantic integration. This remains our priority at the bilateral level. The upcoming summit in Vilnius should be used to formulate a common vision of the modality and timeline of Ukraine’s accession to NATO,” the Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine said.
The parties also discussed the humanitarian aspect of Norway’s assistance. In particular, Ruslan Stefanchuk raised the issue of establishing modern rehabilitation centres for Ukrainian defenders, taking into account Norway’s best practices in this area.
The President of the Storting of the Kingdom of Norway Masud Gharahkhani expressed sincere words of friendship and support to the Ukrainian people in difficult times and assured his Ukrainian counterpart that the people of Norway and its Parliament will always be on the side of Ukraine. “Your fight for freedom and democracy is also our fight for these values. We would like to see the whole of Europe act in this way,” said Masud Gharahkhani.
He reminded that almost all political parties in the Norwegian Parliament had joined the latest powerful package of financial assistance to Ukraine, which means that the Storting of the Kingdom will continue to support any assistance in the struggle of our country. According to him, “this shows the symbolic role of such a gesture and an example to other countries of how important it is to provide comprehensive support to Ukraine.”