Berset assures Selenskyj of “long-term” support
Published: Saturday, Nov 25th 2023, 14:30
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Swiss President Alain Berset promised Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi "long-term" support for the war-torn country at a meeting in Kiev on Saturday. The two spoke for around 45 minutes.
"Switzerland remains at Ukraine's side, even in these times characterized by numerous crises," said Berset at a media conference after the meeting. During his one-on-one meeting with Zelenskyi, the Federal Councillor reiterated that the Ukrainian president could count on Switzerland's solidarity "in the long term".
Berset said that Switzerland's support was not called into question by the "many parallel crises" affecting the world. With his visit, he wanted to demonstrate, among other things, that the Swiss Confederation wanted to continue its efforts on the ground and behind the scenes, even if the spotlight was now somewhat less focused on the region.
Just over a year after the then President of the Swiss Confederation Ignazio Cassis visited Kiev, Berset also traveled to Ukraine to see the situation on the ground for himself. The President of the Swiss Confederation also took part in an international summit on food security. The aim of the summit was to find corridors and routes for the delivery of Ukrainian grain to countries in need despite the Russian blockade.
Switzerland has shown solidarity with Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022. It has repeatedly condemned Russian aggression and joined the European Union (EU) sanctions against Russia.
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