Zelensky: 71% of Europeans consider Ukraine part of Europe, but politicians are hesitant

President Volodymyr Zelensky called on European politicians not to hesitate with a decision to grant Ukraine the EU candidate status, as public opinion is on Ukraine's side.

Zelensky stated this during his speech at the annual Copenhagen Democratic Summit, writes UP.

"On the Ukrainian border, in the Ukrainian Donbas, near Kharkiv, in the south of Ukraine, we can now see that the Ukrainian people are ready to reinforce their words of independence with appropriate actions to defend it. But where is the sign showing that Europe is willing to support all valuable statements with adequate action?

Why, if polls show that 71 percent of Europeans consider Ukraine part of the European family, are there still political skeptics hesitant to allow us to move to the European Union?

If Europe's core values ​​presuppose that every nation is of equal importance and should be equally respected, why the Ukrainian people have been told for so long that they must remain in the "gray" zone between the European Union and russia?

If russia cynically violates all international law documents, why are there still those who are hesitant to block any relations with such a state?

So the first thing is to finally remove this "gray" zone, which is so tempting for the russian state. We need to move from words that Ukraine is part of the European family to action. In the coming weeks, the European Union may take a historic step proving that the statement that the Ukrainian people belong to the European family is not worthless," Zelensky stressed.

The President emphasized that the continuity of the modern world's political regimes, organizations, and institutions is based on the ability to turn words into action. russia has stated that it is ready to move quickly from threats of the destruction of nations and states to war crimes.

But, according to Zelensky, the future of Europe now depends on the readiness of the democratic world to move from words about human rights, democracy, freedom, and the right of nations to self-determination to direct and unambiguous action.

The President proposes, in addition to granting candidate status to Ukraine, to change the security architecture on the European continent and to develop preventive punishment mechanisms for the aggressor on the stage of threatening to attack and kill the unarmed population.

In addition, it is extremely important to ensure justice through international institutions and to implement punishment for all russian war criminals.