Pressure must increase: Zelenskyy discussed the 19th package of sanctions against Russia with the President of the European Council

Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed with European Council President António Costa further steps and the preparation of a new, 19th package of EU sanctions against Russia. Pressure must increase until Russia takes real steps to stop the war. Zelenskyy reported this, according to UNN.

Details

I spoke with the President of the European Council, António Costa. He had just held a European Council meeting dedicated to the results of our negotiations with European colleagues and President Trump in Washington. We have taken an important step to end this war and guarantee security for Ukraine and all of Europe. Reliable security guarantees for Ukraine, which will work, are the most important achievement of our joint work - all partners, and most importantly, Ukrainian bravery, which protected our independence

He also discussed with António the results of the European Council meeting and further joint actions.

We appreciate the unity and unwavering support from the European Union. We agreed to continue working closely together. We also talked about our next steps and the preparation of a new, 19th package of EU sanctions against Russia. Pressure must increase until Russia takes real steps to stop the war

Separately, they discussed the importance of the unity of all 27 EU countries for Ukraine's movement towards EU membership and the opening of negotiation clusters.

Addition

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced that work on a new package of sanctions against Russia is ongoing, and it is planned to be adopted in September 2025.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called on President Donald Trump to pressure Vladimir Putin for a truce to begin as early as the next trilateral meeting that could take place with the participation of Zelenskyy and Putin.

UNN also reported that European Council President António Costa discussed with Volodymyr Zelenskyy further steps for peace. He stated that the main priorities are to stop the killings, promote prisoner exchanges, and ensure the return of thousands of children abducted by Russia.