Kaja Kallas’s visit comes on her first day in office with the new head of the European council, António Costa, also making the trip to Ukraine
As we reported in the opening summary, European Council President Antonio Costa and Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, arrived in Kyiv this morning, in a show of support for Ukraine. Their visit comes as US president-elect, Donald Trump, prepares to take office in late January. Trump, who has claimed he could end the war in 24 hours, has characterised the level of US military assistance to Ukraine as a drain on American resources, and has argued the US contributes too much to Nato, relative to Europe.
“From day one of the war, the EU has stood by the side of Ukraine,” Costa posted on X alongside an image of himself, Kallas and EU enlargement chief Marta Kos arriving via train earlier today. “From day one of our mandate, we are reaffirming our unwavering support to the Ukrainian people.” Costa, a former prime minister of Portugal, is tasked with coordinating the work of the EU’s national leaders and chairing their summits. At a ceremony in Brussels on Friday, he said everyone was yearning for peace after more than 1,000 days of war, “especially the embattled and heroic Ukrainian people”.
