Dear Ukrainians!
Today is the day we honor the memory of millions of our people who were killed by famine. Millions of horrific deaths, with the largest toll during the Holodomor of 1932–33. This was a systematic assault on the Ukrainian people – a policy of genocide that today’s Russia has inherited and made part of its ideology once again. This entire war, currently raging against Ukraine with the potential to spread to other nations, is a consequence of Moscow’s impunity. Whatever form their regime takes, if they remain unpunished, Russia seeks to repeat its evil. Today, millions of our people will light candles of remembrance – it’s our collective tribute to the victims of the Holodomor. But it is also a reminder, for all of us and for everyone around the world, that preserving memory also means acting to defend justice, to protect life, and to ensure that a murderer gets absolutely no reward for the extermination of people. The pain of previous generations of the Ukrainian people and what Ukrainians are forced to endure now – all of these are deeply intertwined. And it speaks volumes to us. In the coming days, consultations with our partners will take place on the steps needed to end the war. I have signed the decree approving the composition of Ukraine’s delegation, and I have also authorized all the relevant directives. Our representatives know how to defend Ukraine’s national interests and exactly what must be done to prevent Russia from launching a third invasion, another strike against Ukraine – just as it has repeatedly committed crimes against our people and against other nations in the past. Right now, this is about much more than any points in any document. We must ensure that nowhere in Europe or the world does the principle prevail that crimes against people and humanity, against states and nations, can ever be rewarded in any way or forgiven. Real peace is always built on guaranteed security and justice. And this feeling is not only mine – I know it is the sentiment of millions of our people and the vast majority of people around the world.
Today, I continued coordination with our partners: I spoke with leaders from Nordic and Baltic countries – eight leaders, representing this entire strong region. And I deeply value their support, and they are true defenders of life.
I also spoke with the Prime Minister of the Netherlands today – I thank him for his readiness to help and for his principled approach. Aid packages for Ukraine will be provided. We hold ongoing consultations at various levels with other European friends, and not only Europeans – these are the G7 and our friends from the G20, and other countries around the world – many are ready to support us, ready to support Ukraine. Thank you for that. Further negotiations are coming.
And today we also had several internal matters to address. I had a detailed discussion about our next steps in internal policy with government officials. It’s important that the Winter Support program is moving at a good pace – almost 10 million applications have already been submitted. Payments will begin next week. Funds can be used until June, but please submit applications via Diia or Ukrposhta by the end of December – by Christmas. We will ensure the full funding for this program.
I also spoke with the Prime Minister of Ukraine about audits that have already started in energy companies and an additional audit of the entire defense sector – defense enterprises. This military audit must be conducted as promptly as possible, covering relevant contracts, finances, operations, and so on. I have instructed that the results be presented to the public, with weekly reporting preferred. Materials should be forwarded to law enforcement and anti-corruption bodies. Today, there was also a report by the Commander-in-Chief on the situation at the front, on Russian disinformation operations, and on their plans. The most difficult situation is in Pokrovsk, the entire direction, where significant Russian forces, more than 150,000, continue their attacks. Every single day, that area faces the highest number of attacks – this has been going on for many months now – and what’s important is that our warriors, our units, are destroying the occupier. We are carrying out counter-offensive operations. We are also defending positions along the border between the Dnipro and Donetsk regions. We are defending our positions in the Kharkiv region. We are defending our positions in the Zaporizhzhia region, things are difficult there. In the Orikhiv and Hulyaipole directions, we are doing everything we can to stabilize the situation. I thank you all for your resilience! I thank everyone who stands with Ukraine!
Glory to Ukraine!