Ukraine, Nordic countries issue joint statement after summit in Helsinki
The presidents of Finland and Ukraine, and the prime ministers of Denmark, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden issued a joint statement following the Nordic-Ukrainian summit in Helsinki, Finland, on May 3, 2023.
The document released on the Finnish president’s website states that:
· the leaders of Ukraine and the five Nordic countries reiterate their unequivocal condemnation of Russia’s ongoing war of aggression against Ukraine; Russia must immediately, completely and unconditionally withdraw all its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders;
· the Nordic countries remain unwavering in their commitment to Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders; will continue their political, financial, humanitarian and military support to Ukraine for as long as it takes;
· the combined value of national Nordic military assistance packages issued to Ukraine so far since February 2022 is approximately EUR 4.4 billion. The combined value of these national Nordic measures since February 2022 already exceeds EUR 1.5 billion and will continue to grow;
· the Nordic countries support Ukraine’s initiative for a just and sustainable peace based on Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Peace Formula put forward by Ukraine includes a variety of important objectives, many of which the Nordic countries are already working on;
· Ukraine and the Nordic countries underline their firm commitment to bringing to justice those responsible for war crimes and other atrocity crimes committed in connection with Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine; welcome on-going international efforts, in co-operation with Ukraine, to ensure accountability through the establishment of an appropriate mechanism (a special tribunal) for prosecuting the crime of aggression; encourage other countries to join and to build international support for the creation of a tribunal; welcome the agreement on the new International Centre for Prosecution of the Crime of Aggression against Ukraine (ICPA) in The Hague, and look forward to its launch as soon as possible;
· Ukraine and the Nordic countries agree on the need to increase collective pressure on Russia through further sanctions to weaken Russia’s ability to continue its illegal war of aggression; Efforts to ensure the effective implementation of sanctions and to prevent and counter circumvention in and by third countries must be strengthened;
· Ukraine and the Nordic countries will continue to work together with others to develop mechanisms to provide compensation for losses, injuries and damage caused by the Russian aggression; will continue to explore appropriate options for the financing of a compensation mechanism, including a sound legal basis for the use of frozen and immobilized Russian assets, to support Ukraine’s reconstruction and for the purposes of reparation;
· the Nordic countries, together with international organizations and partners, are committed to participate in the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine after the war;
· the future of Ukraine and its people lies within the Euro-Atlantic family; the Nordic EU members will strongly support Ukraine in its reform efforts and in meeting the requirements needed to start accession negotiations as soon as possible;
· Ukraine and the Nordic countries look forward to addressing the issue of Ukraine’s membership in NATO at the Summit in Vilnius in July 2023.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Finland on May 3 at the invitation of the Finnish government to take part in the summit of Nordic leaders.
During the press conference, he emphasized that Ukraine should become NATO’s 33rd member (after Sweden).
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