each of us, and this important day is less than a week away. now on the espresso tv channel we will talk with viola von kramon, a member of the european parliament, deputy head of the delegation of the parliamentary committee of the ukraine yas association, viola von kramon. viola, we are glad to welcome you to lviv. thank you very much, natalya, for inviting me. during your visit to lviv, an air raid alarm sounded. unfortunately, ukrainians are already used to these sounds, but what about you? well, to be honest, it's not the first time for me, this is the ninth time in two years. that is, this is my ninth time since the full-scale russian invasion of ukraine. i'm used to it. but it's a shame, it's not something

ukrainians should get used to, daily air alarms, air attacks, even in the west of ukraine, of course, are very scary. i don't want to say that i feel unsafe or unsafe here. i know that there are ukrainian defenders, that military equipment is also working, that people in the east and south of ukraine are in the greatest danger. however, you are under constant stress, you are under constant pressure, and you feel that the war is going on. i am aware that many relatives and friends of my friends and our partners in ukraine are suffering, and it hurts, both for us and for the european parliament, and that is why we must do more. please tell us about the purpose of your trip to ukraine. this time we came to... two ukrainian women's

organizations organized a big conference here, which lasted two days. so, it was about the involvement of women, the involvement of women in the reconstruction of ukraine, but also in progress of european integration, accession to the eu. about why it's important to include women in negotiations, why it's important for women to have access to funds, about the fact that we see active participation of women in the military, in the economy, we see domestic violence, and also of course sexual violence inherent in war crimes. so, we discussed all these topics with experts from ukraine. with international experts, with

our people. and it was extremely impressive, it really inspired me, and i see how strong ukrainian women are, how brave they are, how dedicated they are. it also empowers us so we return home with a lot of knowledge and zeal. in addition, we can also... share with our colleagues in the european parliament what this particular area looks like in ukraine. ukrainians are waiting for an important meeting in brussels. the summit of the european union will take place in mid-december, namely on december 14 and 15. european leaders may make a historic decision to start negotiations.

meetings, including because of the position , but the media write that this is one of the most difficult in hungary. what do you think it could be decision, is there a possibility that it will be delayed until march? i would not like to see such a development of events, i think that ukraine deserves it now. the ukrainian people, ukrainian citizens deserve this. my colleagues, ukrainian deputies, worked on the legislation. most of the reforms have been ratified. therefore, ukraine has fulfilled all the recommendations of the european commission. and it is already obvious that the european commission gave the green light and recommended the council of the eu and the european parliament to start the negotiation process. so that's it for us.

it is absolutely clear that there is only one obstacle, and that obstacle is viktor orbán, who is trying to blackmail us. not for the first time. the solution can. of course, orbán is playing his national cards, he wants to unfreeze his own money. he did not carry out any reforms in the field of jurisprudence, no internal reforms, reforms in the field of media, electoral reforms, so we were forced to freeze his money, he wants to unfreeze this money and uses the hungarian minority in ukraine. but this is of no use here. ukraine has no leverage here. of course we are could give him some of the money and then maybe he would change his mind. but i don't think that's the point. he wants to destroy

the eu from within. he is putin's man in the european union. and we should seriously think about whether it is worth it. then to expel him from the eu, and how to make it so that he does not constantly put obstacles in this game. of course, we can find another solution, for example through intergovernmental contracts that do not go through eu mechanisms, but this adds administrative work, so i think that in brussels we would like to avoid this method, but in general i believe that we should not allow orbán to blackmail us and create a threat to ukraine. i want to put some emphasis on hungary's position, because you also talked about it, hungary not only blocks ukraine's accession to the european union, but also blocks aid to ukraine in general. so how can this be countered at the level

of the european union, or will there be changes within the organization itself? yes, this is actually the idea, to find a way, as we did, for example, in... 2009-10 for greece. at that time, there was a structure in which not every country contributed to the financial assistance of greece. something similar could be introduced. but this is certainly not the best option. on the other hand, it is bad if hungary does not play by the rules. this country has nothing to do. and i think that the leaders, heads of state , should come up with an action plan for hungary as a whole. but what we should really try to avoid is that ukraine suffers from a hungarian veto or blockade. and

i hope that a solution will be found for this particular at the summit in brussels case not only ukraine, but also moldova is waiting for this meeting of european leaders in brussels. so, do european countries have a common position? regarding the accession of ukraine and moldova to the european union. after all, there are only two weeks left until the start of the event. are moldova's prospects better? than in ukraine. i don't know if we group these countries together and consider them at the same time. i think hungary has an interest in blocking them both. but he, orban, talks only

about ukraine. so i don't know how it intertwines and if there is a chance that yez will only start from moldova. and then we will wait, i don't know what moment, to start negotiations regarding kyiv at the end of march. but i think that the european commission would actually like to approach moldova and ukraine equally. i don't know about the latest, let's say, agreements and compromises that may be being prepared, but so far i have heard that they are working. over plan b. war is not the only problem for ukraine now. ukrainians have other challenges, such as the blockade on the polish border. the strike of polish

carriers blocking the border has been going on for almost three weeks. the polish government distanced itself from these strikes and says that this issue should be resolved by the european union. are you following? on this topic, regarding the problem in poland, as you can see, there were elections in the middle of october, there is a party, there is a coalition that clearly won, it has... a majority in the coalition in the diet, which could propose a new government. but he has not yet been appointed and is not included in the agenda of the president. the president does not accept this. he insists on the old government, which will never form a majority government. i think that the new government is pro-european and this is certain

problem, so we have an outgoing government that is virtually unable and uninterested in addressing this issue. while we see that we urgently need to solve it. people in ukraine are suffering, people need to deliver goods to the european union. they want to make money, they need income, but instead they are locked in there, it's a big problem. i am not sure how the polish government positions itself. they blame brussels for everything, point the finger at him, although in reality. it is they who bear the responsibility, and it is certain a problem the winter season is a very difficult

period for our drivers and for ukrainians in general. last winter we saw russia use energy as a weapon. in particular, it attacked with missiles. ukrainian power plant. moscow also blackmailed the european union with gas issues. how much has the policy of germany and the european union changed in this area after the full-scale russian invasion? well, at least officially there is no longer a contract with russia. unfortunately, we know that because of the global market, the international market. volumes of gas coming from russia, but officially we

no longer receive any gas or oil imports from russia. there are some countries that import from russia, like hungary, austria, i don't know one or two others, but we are really trying to reduce our imports of fossil fuels and resources from russia. we can finance russia's bloody war against ukraine, russia's aggressive war, russian genocide against ukrainians. therefore, most politicians in germany are very well aware of this. and that's why, at least last winter, many people were forced to pay significantly higher prices for gas and electricity. now, at the international level , prices have fallen again. that's fine, but we need to increase our renewable energy sources, make sure our

electricity is not dependent on importing russian gas, and that's certainly not the case now, we still need a lot of gas, but we don't buy it from russia anymore. viola, i want to go back to some of your words. in one of the interviews, you talked about supporting ukraine, weapons and money, nothing else matters today. ukrainian government says practically the same thing. how do you assess the supply of weapons to ukraine today? a few months ago, we promised that we would provide ukraine with one million rounds of ammunition, but we have not even reached the limit of 250,000-300,000. that is, we have only one third of what was promised. and

ukraine needs a lot. and russia is increasing its production, increasing its capacities. we know it has missiles, ammunition, artillery, tanks, everything. and we still act like there's no war, and that's a problem. yes, compared to many other countries, germany has provided some equipment, indeed, it is more than expected, but it is still not enough, and we must make sure that ukraine can win this war. we have to make sure that you're going to be successful in the counteroffensive, and for that you need a lot more ranged weapons, you need a lot more offensive weapons, you need a lot more tanks and so on. zaluzhny wrote an article, he gave an interview in the economist. everything is already known, so we need technology, we need

information technology, we need more modern drones, cheap drones. which are now produced by the russians and so on. so, everything is known, we need to adapt faster, our industry needs to keep these orders, we need a fast certification process for this equipment and so on and so forth. every time i talk to people involved in this process, they say, yes, it's going to happen, yes, we 're working on it, but we're too slow. european leaders have said many times that the war blocked ukraine's membership in the european union, as well as in nato. how are you do you assess ukraine's chances of joining nato, is there perhaps an alternative to membership? it's hard

to say at the moment. on the one hand, it's again hungary and turkey, which are strongly against it, but also i see that the chancellor and president biden do not support it. and therein lies the problem. they founded the ukraine nato council, it's better than nothing. there is no real impact on security, for membership we need more security guarantees, we need more commitments. we need to make sure that , if there is political will in russia, to start negotiations, there must be a plan, a concept that will be accepted by nato countries,

how to provide and ensure security for ukraine at this moment. there are already some things on paper, but i don't think there are any commitments from different nato members. and here, i think, we need more political pressure from different political players. of course, from the side of ukraine, but also from the side of civil society in our countries. the problem is that people still do not understand that if there is no peace and stability in ukraine, it will threaten our security in europe. if ukraine does not succeed, it will affect us as well.

moldova, georgia, armenia, the baltic countries may be next, we don't know. but russia will get an incentive if ukraine does not beat russia. with the beginning of the full-scale russian invasion, ukraine's allies provided our country with a lot of help. germany has officially accepted the largest number of ukrainian refugees among other countries. how does the country cope with this? i don't know the exact number at the moment, but that's how we have to find the right balance. should

support ukrainians, absolutely. also need to be less bureaucratic, so we need to open up the labor market. those people who can work, who would like to work, they need a permit to get or find a job. so far it's a bit tricky and i guess it remains to be seen how the new legislation will work. i mean that in some parts, unfortunately, support for ukrainian refugees, ukrainian migrants and citizens has decreased. in some parts the atmosphere is really very negative and we have to actively convince our people why we should to help ukrainians, why the suffering of

the war will possibly lead to more refugees from ukraine if russia attacks infrastructure, if russia is more successful and occupies more territory. therefore, everything is possible and we need more opportunities for this. i hope this will not happen, but just in case ukrainians need shelter, help, accommodation. i think germany should be ready for this. yes, i want to make a certain emphasis, because you are a person from the german side who deals with shelters in lviv and tops. for ukrainians affected by this war, how exactly do you help? we have been cooperating with some partners in

west saxony for a long time. now we have created a partnership for the sake of solidarity with verkhovyna and our native community. so we try to at least send some practical things that are needed. i hope that next year we will also be able to invite young children to our home community, to our home town, to hold a youth camp there and so on. it's not much, but it helps. and of course, we are also in touch with the shelter project, where we are trying to find funding, partners. we try to train those people who run the shelter, conduct courses there and the like. i think

it is very important that the idps who have suffered while fleeing the war and have been traumatized can find a new perspective, so that they can be rehabilitated, so that they can recover and rest. and for this, the shelter project is very , very important. at the beginning of our interview, you mentioned the purpose of your visit to ukraine. please tell me what other projects you have plan to implement in lviv in the near future. i am a politician in the european parliament, so i do not have a specific project in the region. but it is absolutely obvious to me that lviv is a very strong city, as it has a very active civil society. but

people also wear out with time, the war goes on, time goes by, winter is coming, so i see that the german federal government is doing a lot for the twin cities. freiburg and lviv are sister cities. we know that money from the place... to support citizens, infrastructure, humanitarian goods, that definitely important. also, as i said, we really try to pay attention to the needs of women. that is why we continue to focus our attention on women. we would like to see women in the negotiating teams, so i will focus. what else can you say about

the attitude towards ukrainians in the european union and europe in general? ukraine would be of great value to the eu. we see a lot of young, very well-educated people. we see that even before the war there was close cooperation with it companies and other sectors, where especially people from ukraine made a big contribution. we see that there is now a lot of interest in the rebuilding phase. we have to make sure that we bring in those people who were forced to leave the country, educate them. train them and then bring them into the reconstruction, i mean, if they want to, of course, i would never force anybody, but we have to give them the opportunity

to come back, or maybe... and it's a good, let's say, bridge . if ukraine becomes a member of the european union, we need people who understand the local system, who speak the language, and therefore in our interests to provide employment opportunities in our home countries, but also to make sure that if people want to return, they have a good environment to return to. to make sure that schools are rebuilt, modern schools with new textbooks, that there are good hospitals, kindergartens, that is, infrastructure for people in their cities, in their local communities, and this is in our interests, we want a good, strong, stable, stable ukraine , not only in big cities, but also in rural areas, it is in our interests, and i see that many

my ukrainians. thank you very much for this interview and your personal support of ukraine. thank you very much for inviting me, it is always a pleasure to be your guest. i would like to remind you that today we spoke on the air of the tv channel with viola von kramon, a member of the european parliament, deputy head of the delegation of the associates parliamentary committee. ukraine eu. stay with us. do ordinary things become unreal? heavy bags are not for my sore back. for back pain, try dolgit cream. dolgit cream relieves pain,

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dr. tice's comfrey warming cream, before... events, events that are happening right now and affect our lives, of course, the news feed reports about them, but it is not enough to know what is happening, you need to understand, antin borkovsky and invited experts are sober evaluate events, analyze them, model them. or our future every saturday at 1:10 p.m. with a repeat on sunday at 10:10 a.m. studio zahid with anton borkovsky at espresso. channel espresso and ukrainian pen present the project of their own name with myroslaya barchuk. a series of conversations with ukrainian and western intellectuals who analyze and comment on the most relevant social debates. what news will be analyzed by the guests of the project this week and

actually who will be the guest. studios, we will find out already this sunday, definitely, the topics will be relevant, the guests will be special, their own names from myroslava barchuk, sunday 17:10 at espresso. it's 10 o'clock on the clock, it's time to find out what is happening in ukraine and the world at this time, khrystyna parubiy is working in the studio. one person was injured due to enemy shelling from the kherson region. during the day, the enemy attacked the region 62 times, fired more than 300 shells, of which more than 40 hit the city of kherson. russians