Zelenskyy denied that his meeting with von der Leyen was tense and revealed details

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied media reports of an allegedly tense meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in New York. According to him, the talks were prepared in advance and went well.

The day before, Bloomberg reported that the meeting between Zelenskyy and Ursula von der Leyen in New York was allegedly tense. 

The President of Ukraine denied this information.

“The meeting was, by the way, absolutely positive. I don’t know where that message came from. I would even say it was a very positive meeting,” Zelenskyy said.

According to the head of state, the talks were preceded by a phone call with Ursula von der Leyen, during which the parties discussed a number of issues in advance.

“My talks with Ursula von der Leyen were not difficult because they had been prepared in advance. We had spoken on the phone beforehand and discussed some issues,” Zelenskyy said.

One of the main topics of the meeting was Ukraine’s need for additional funding amid the rising cost of the war.

The parties also discussed the possibility of tying a portion of European funding to the Verkhovna Rada’s adoption of necessary laws. Zelenskyy emphasized that due to the full-scale war, the Ukrainian parliament cannot operate under the same conditions as it does in peacetime.

Separately, they discussed the possibility of bringing forward Ukraine’s receipt of a portion of the funds from the second tranche of European financing. Ukraine plans to send its financial team to Europe to conduct the relevant negotiations.

“We agreed that they will sit down and consider how to disburse part of the funds from the second tranche and expedite the transfer, because we need the money for drones,” Zelenskyy said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that his meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in New York was positive. According to him, the Ukrainian and European sides agreed to seek solutions that would accelerate the flow of funding to Ukraine.

Leaders of European Union member states plan to discuss further support for Kyiv with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the European Council summit on October 15–16 in Brussels.

The European Parliament has approved legislative changes as part of the Omnibus V package that will allow the European Defense Fund to finance the testing of defense projects in Ukraine as a candidate country. The new measures are also intended to accelerate defense investments and streamline the procurement and movement of military equipment within the EU.