She urged not to forget that "Ukraine is a sovereign country, and it has determined its own future by requesting to join the EU," while "the response was the invasion by its neighbor, the aggressor country Russia."
Ursula von der Leyen also reminded that this is not only about the security of Ukraine but also about the security of Europe. She emphasized that the people of Ukraine desire "a just and lasting peace," rather than a "frozen conflict that will flare up again later."
According to her, it is essential for the EU that Ukraine remains an independent nation and that Ukraine itself makes decisions regarding its own territory.