Prime Minister Orpo meets with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy at European Council – Zelenskyy expresses gratitude to Finland

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo and President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met in Brussels on 23 October. Their bilateral discussion took place in connection with the European Council.

Prime Minister Orpo informed President Zelenskyy that Finland would be contributing EUR 100 million to the new Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List (PURL) initiative coordinated by NATO.

Prime Minister Orpo also emphasised to President Zelenskyy that Finland is working actively at the EU level so that Russia’s frozen assets can be used to support Ukraine.
 
“Russia is systematically destroying Ukraine’s energy grid as winter approaches. Together with our allies, Finland is helping Ukraine defend itself and counter Putin’s attacks on civilian infrastructure. The only way to stop Russia is with power,” Orpo said in Brussels.

“Zelenskyy thanked the people of Finland for our broad support to Ukraine and for participating in the procurement of weapons to meet the Ukrainians’ needs. Finland and Ukraine are stepping up cooperation in areas such as the defence industry and civil defence,” said Prime Minister Orpo.

At the European Council, the EU leaders reached an agreement on the 19th package of sanctions against Russia. Prime Minister Orpo noted that the package is reinforced by the announcement that the United States and the United Kingdom will be imposing sanctions on Russian oil companies.

“In addition to supporting Ukraine, we must work to destabilise Russia’s war economy. Strong sanctions are a powerful tool for this,” Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said.

The EU leaders’ discussions at the European Council focused on support for Ukraine and strengthening European defence, among other themes.

Inquiries: Mikko Martikkala, Special Adviser to the Prime Minister in Economic Affairs, tel. +358 40 708 3932, Juuso Kilpinen, Special Adviser for EU Affairs, tel. +358 50 322 9636 and Marko Ruonala, Chief Communications Specialist, +358 50 522 8233, Prime Minister’s Office