In the meantime, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy also released a video and some comments from his speech to the European Council summit in Brussels earlier this morning.

The Ukrainian president urged leaders to not fall for the Russian “hoax,” pretending that he wants a ceasefire where the opposite is true, as he said “Putin must stop making unnecessary demands that only prolong the war and must start fulfilling what he promises the world.”

She specifically told them to keep pressure and sanctions on Russia “until it starts withdrawing from our land and fully compensates for the damage caused by its aggression.”

“Keep fighting against sanction evasion schemes and Russia’s attempts to finance its war effort,” he pleaded.

But he also asked for more pressure “within Europe itself,” calling out Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán for blocking Ukraine’s prospects of joining the EU.

“It is simply anti-European when one person blocks decisions important for the entire continent or that have already been agreed upon. Ukraine fulfilled the requirements, but right now, there are serious difficulties in opening Ukraine’s first and other negotiation clusters for EU accession,” he said.

He ended on thanks for continued support and his comments that Europe “must always be at the table” in discussions on security, reassuring leaders he raised it in talks with the US.

Here is the video and here are the comments as released, in full:

I addressed the European Council and emphasized that if we say Europe should be stronger in global competition, we must also discuss making European decision-making faster, more flexible, more effective – whether in politics, defense, economics, industry, or any other area.

Last night, Russia launched a massive drone attack on Ukraine—171 strike drones, mostly Shaheds. Their target was our infrastructure. And in the city of Kropyvnytskyi, in central Ukraine, residential buildings, a church, and a school were damaged. Among the wounded—four children.

Yesterday evening, another Russian strike hit our energy infrastructure. We in Ukraine face this every day and night. And despite Putin’s words about being “ready to stop attacks”—nothing has changed.

It’s crucial that our partners’ support for Ukraine doesn’t decrease but instead continues and grows. Air defense, military aid, our overall resilience—all are crucial. We need funds for artillery shells and would really appreciate Europe’s support with at least five billion euros as soon as possible.

Investments in weapons production are needed both in Ukraine and in Europe. Europe must ensure its technological independence, including in weapons manufacturing. Everything necessary to defend the continent should be produced in Europe.

The ReArm Europe program should start operating as soon as possible. Ukraine has effective and modern tech, especially in drones and electronic warfare, which can benefit all of Europe and our global partners. Further development, and increased efficiency – along with European investments in Ukraine’s production and co-production – are key to Europe’s new security foundation.

Sanctions against Russia must remain in place until it starts withdrawing from our land and fully compensates for the damage caused by its aggression. Keep fighting against sanction evasion schemes and Russia’s attempts to finance its war effort.

Ongoing diplomatic efforts do not mean Russia should face less pressure. That’s crucial to reducing the chances of a Russian hoax. We all know how easily Moscow disregards its promises – one moment they give their word, and a few hours later it means absolutely nothing. That’s why we must keep pushing Russia toward peace.

Yesterday, I had a productive conversation with President Trump. Ukraine has always advocated for an end to attacks on energy and infrastructure and a ceasefire at sea. Our teams will also work towards achieving an unconditional, full ceasefire on land.

Putin must stop making unnecessary demands that only prolong the war and must start fulfilling what he promises the world. By now, there could have been over a week without killings, without strikes, without fire – if Putin were not the only one keeping this war going. The proposals made in Jeddah on March 11 are still on the table. We must keep pressuring Russia to make them a reality.

Unfortunately, some pressure is also needed within Europe itself to ensure that anything promised – actually happens, particularly Ukraine’s EU accession talks and resolving some fundamental issues for European unity.

It is simply anti-European when one person blocks decisions important for the entire continent or that have already been agreed upon. Ukraine fulfilled the requirements, but right now, there are serious difficulties in opening Ukraine’s first and other negotiation clusters for EU accession.

European efforts that should be bringing more security and peace are also constantly being obstructed. This is wrong. Europe must have a way to prevent individual actors from blocking what’s necessary for all.

Europe needs speed in making decisions and clear tools to protect itself from unnecessary blockages. Ukraine is part of Europe, and Europe is one of the players in global peace efforts. We did our best for Europe to be equal with others in these efforts and peace negotiations. Together we achieved it.

Europe must always be at the table in discussions about its own security. We must work in unity on all European matters. We talked about this in Jeddah, and we always discuss it with all our partners – Europe is a participant in diplomacy.

I am grateful to those working with us on future security guarantees for Ukraine—and, in turn, for the entire eastern flank of Europe and the continent as a whole. For those who haven’t joined yet—I invite you to do so. All of us must be as efficient as possible in this work on security guarantees – and as quick as possible.