The president of Ukraine held a meeting with the head of the Foreign Intelligence Service to discuss current threats and some sensitive areas of international work, Volodymyr Zelenskyy in his evening video address.
"We continue to work with our partners - I met the UK Secretary of State for Defence. He was on a visit to Ukraine today. I thanked him for the UK's tangible leadership in supporting Ukraine's security, strengthening our defence and the world's joint capabilities to defend itself against Russian aggression. Today we discussed our further cooperation. The priorities are obvious: Air defence, long-range weapons, artillery. Supply and joint production. And achieving justice, so that every Russian murderer and their entire terrorist state are held accountable for this war," the president said.
He added that Ukraine has already reached a historically unprecedented level of cooperation with the UK - the first bilateral agreement on security guarantees was signed with the UK.
"Today I also approved the candidacy of our country's Ambassador to the UK. General Valeriy Zaluzhnyy told me about this particular direction for himself - diplomatic. The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine has sent a corresponding request for agreement. Our alliance with the UK should only get stronger," the president said.
Today, Zelenskyy signed two decrees on awarding state decorations to 520 servicemen of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
Also today, the president signed a decree to discharge conscripts - those who were called up for military service before the start of the full-scale invasion. Now, at the request of the military command, it will take a few weeks to complete the preparatory procedures to replace people in terms of defence tasks, and from April, conscripts will be sent to the reserve. "I know that some of them have signed a contract to serve in the Defence Forces. I am grateful to everyone," Zelenskyy said.
He presented certificates for apartments to the Heroes of Ukraine and the families of the fallen Heroes.
"Today, Russia struck Sumy again. There are wounded. Unfortunately, there are dead. My condolences to all those who have lost their loved ones. The Russian state will definitely be held accountable for this evil. Our warriors will ensure the responsibility of terrorists," he said.
The president recalled that the procedures for Sweden's accession to NATO were being completed.
"Now, in the time of Russian aggression against everything that has made Europe peaceful and united, everyone sees how important it is to support alliances and partnerships, strengthen our own security and take care of the security of our neighbours," Zelenskyy stressed.