Pressemøde den 2. oktober 2025

Maskinetransskriberet

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: Thank you, and first of all, let me start by expressing my deepest sympathy to the British people and to the Jewish community and to our friend Keir Starmer, who had to leave the summit today. The incident in Manchester is terrible and horrifying. And my thoughts are with the affected families in these difficult times.

And then coming back to Copenhagen, dear Volodymyr, for almost four years, you and your countrymen have defended Ukraine and by that Europe against a brutal Russian full-scale war of aggression. And this very forum the European Political Community was founded as a direct response to the full-scale invasion in 2022. I’m very glad that at the meeting today in Copenhagen we have confirmed our unwavering support for you and the people of Ukraine.

It is clear to everybody that Russia is a threat, not only to Ukraine, but to all of Europe. Lately, we have seen how Russia has increased airspace violations and hybrid attacks in Europe with fighter jets and with drones.

 Migrants being pushed across our borders, interference in democratic elections and cyber-attacks targeting critical infrastructure. Russia is testing us and more than ever we need to stand strong together. That is what the meeting today has been about and now more than ever we have to join forces to build a stronger and of course also a more secure Europe.

First of all, and once again we have to strengthen our support to Ukraine with weapons, more sanctions against Russia. And I would like all Europeans to look at it this way, that every euro or dollar or Danish crown we send to Ukraine is a direct investment in European security. Secondly, we have to build a much stronger European defense and, of course, also respond to hybrid threats that we face. One part of this response will be to strengthen our defense against drones, to increase our own drone production. And it has to be in very close cooperation with you in Ukraine. The EPC brings countries together from all over Europe, of course, with very different views on many different matters. But all these differences are not so important anymore because of the great challenge that we share, the threat from Russia against Europe.

 And that is why our common task is as simple as it is now serious. We have to be able to defend ourselves and we have to defend the values that we believe in. And of course, and this is to conclude, to make Europe so strong that war against us is no longer an option. And it starts and unfortunately for now it also ends with what's happening in Ukraine. So, supporting you is the most important task. And with that I pass the floor to you.

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: Thank you so much dear Mette. Thank you for your kind words and support and invitation. Dear journalists, dear our teams, we had a lot of very productive meetings today, and I am thankful to Mette and to Denmark for hosting the summit so well.

Unfortunately, we all see that Russia is stepping up its destructive actions, and what matters most for Europe's security now is political will. And that was the main topic today. We feel that Europeans are clearly determined to respond and to respond properly to the growing drone threat. Russian drones have gone too far. Dangerous incidents with Russia have also gone too far. Denmark, other Nordic countries, Poland, our neighbors, Romania, and relations of Baltic airspace, all of these shows the need for joint action and for every European country to have the ability to shut down drones.

 Our military guys with solid experience in drones are now in Denmark, and we will share their experience and their expertise. And I hope today's meeting will strongly support the idea of joint defense against drones. It can be called anything. I mean, a drone wall, a drone dome, or drone rabbit response. But the point is the same. Every country must be, of course, must be protected from spy strike and any other drones. And from the threat Russia has created for Ukraine with daily drone attacks. We see clearly that only joint action and united efforts can guarantee real security. No country should be left alone against this threat. And I also want to thank all our partners for supporting the further development of programs like PURL. We value this program a lot. It helps our defense.

Today we spoke with partners who may join and we expect new support. And we also talked about the SAFE program, one of Europe's strong defense tools. And we hope Ukraine will be an equal partner in it. And it's important that there is a common understanding that we need to move forward with security guarantees for Ukraine. The model that works for us can also work for others in Europe.

 Today, we talked a lot about the battlefield in Ukraine, about how our soldiers are stopping Russian assaults. And Russia planned a lot of this year, but has achieved very, very little. This is thanks to our soldiers and to everyone who helps us. Russia is making many mistakes, and that is why we need to increase the pressure and increase the pressure now so that they are forced to end the war and change their policy.

 We are counting on a strong new package of EU sanctions and its quick approval, as well as strong measures from our partners. Special focus should be on Russia's tanker fleet, the ship captains and crews and the oil terminals. All of these maximum sanctions. It is important that European countries keep limiting the buying of Russian energy and reducing ties with Russia. Any connection with Russia can be used against you. So, the fewer ties with Russia, the safer life will be. And life must be protected. And I'm glad that almost all leaders are raising the issue of fully using their frozen Russian assets. Their decisions are clear and it is important to fully implement them.

And I thank everyone for their support in this. And today we also spoke with leaders about the European future of Ukraine and also European future of Moldova and the Western Balkans. Everyone agrees that Ukraine is ready. Open the clusters, starting with the cluster number one fundamentals.

It's important to keep promises and open them. I thank you, Mette, again, for your role and support in this process. And I thank Denmark for hosting us today, hosting today's meeting. 

Thank you so much. Slava Ukraini.

Journalist (Ritzau): A question for the President on the result of the meeting here in Copenhagen. Once again, we hear Prime Minister Orban saying no to EU membership for Ukraine. And regarding a reparations loan for Ukraine, we hear a very skeptical Belgian Prime Minister. Are you concerned about the lack of unity among the EU member states on these two crucial subjects for Ukraine? And what do you see as the concrete results of this meeting? And if I may, a question for the Danish Prime Minister and also for the President. Prime Minister Orban suggests instead of EU membership, a strategic partnership for Ukraine on economic issues, on trade, energy and security. Do you see a middle ground here or do you think that it's only the option of EU membership that counts?

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: No, I think we have to stick to strategy and enlargement of the European Union is a part of our strategy. And it's a question for the entire European Union and actually the entire European continent. And we have to build as strong Europe as possible, which in my world means enlarge the European Union. There is European unity because we are 26 countries agreeing that Ukraine, Moldova and other countries should join us. By the way, they're doing quite an amazing job, even though they are at war.

So, no, I think we have to stick to strategy. And I will not allow one country and I will certainly not allow Viktor Orban to take decisions upon the entire European future. So, I don't know what middle ground is, but if middle ground means that we won't do what is the best thing to do for Europe, then I don't think middle ground is a good idea. So, we have to continue to try to find a solution and a way with Hungary. But no, I think we should stick to strategy. When it comes to the frozen assets and the question about reparation loans, we had a tough discussion yesterday. It was also very fruitful. There are some technical questions that has to be raised and has to be answered. But I'm quite sure that we will be able to find a way. And as can be it's only fair that Russia pays for the damages they have done to Ukraine and to Europe.

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: Thanks so much for your question. I agree with Mette. And just to add, now we have this unity from all our real partners, mostly all the all the countries in Europe, not only in the EU, but yes, in a wider sense. So, we're very thankful. And you saw today, not only you, and also, we saw our partners from Europe and UK were very supportive also. And I'm thankful again to Keir. But especially after these attacks of Russian drones, I think the unity is more strong. And I think that reaction has also to be strong, to my mind.

But in any way, so we will work on this issue, as I said already, together. We will build this new format. I'm sure we have to do it. And for all the countries. And it's very important not only for the leaders, it's important for societies, for people just to understand what security they have and on what they can count.

 And about blocking our way to EU, nobody can block, because it's a will of our nation and decision of Ukrainian people. And, of course, the decision of Europe to see Ukraine the member in the future, the member of EU. But, of course, it depends, again, on unity, yes, on united decision. Yes, we have problems with Hungary. We can open, speak about it, because Viktor Orban has elections. And I think it's not smart because he has elections. That's why he's blocking big 40 million nation on their way to EU. Big and strong nation. Because, by the way, Russia began this war because our will and our choice, choice to go directly to Europe because we feel the same and share the same values with all other European countries.

Journalist (Inter TV): Mr. President, Russia has stepped up strikes on Ukraine's energy infrastructure. You promised a mirror response. The Washington Post reported that U.S. intelligence will provide Ukraine with coordinates of Russian energy facilities. Is it true? And do we have sufficient long-range capabilities to respond? And the questions for the Prime Minister, is Europe ready to help scale up Ukraine's production of long-range drones and missiles, as well as interceptor drones, which are urgently needed to defend against Russia's energy terrorism. Thank you.

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: I can answer very shortly to my question? Yes.

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: Can I answer the same way? Thank you for your question. So, first of all, we never attacked some civilian infrastructure in Russia. We always answered after the attacks on our energy. We began to answer. First, it was a little bit more than one year ago. We didn't have capabilities to answer. And you remember when they did blackouts in Ukraine and a lot of such awful things attacked us. Now we can answer, and they feel our strong answers. We need a little bit more financing to be comparable because when they, we spoke about it today, when they use each day 500 drones, for example, or 600 drones, we use 100, 150, just capabilities. We have enough capabilities. Just now the question of finance. I spoke with partners. And by increasing finance, we will increase and be comparable with long-distance drones. And Russia will have more questions. More questions from, I think, their society to their leaders.

This is important. Before this moment, we used on long-distance targets, we used only our weapon, as you know. And after my meeting with the President of the United States, yes, we will maybe have something more. I don't know. We'll see.

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: And maybe I can add to that.

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: Maybe you know what we will have?

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: No, unfortunately not. But what I know is that you still have free capacity in your own production lines. And I have, of course, asked our colleagues and allies to bring more money, to bring more financing into the production lines in Ukraine, because you are capable of producing more than what we have been able to raise financing for.

Journalist (Reuters): Prime Minister Frederiksen, you said that you won't allow Viktor Orban to take decisions on behalf of the whole European Union, but as you know, the accession process proceeds with unanimity at every step of the process. So, do you have any suggestions? We've heard various options about ways to get around that.

 None of them seem to fly. So how do you actually move forward when Hungary is taking this very clear and unambiguous stance. And similarly, on frozen assets, where the Hungarian prime minister has said he's not going along, he's not interested in mutualizing the risk that Belgium would have to take. So how are you going to get around that? Do you think that can be done without him?

And President Zelenskyj, a broader question for you perhaps on U.S. support. Are you confident that the United States is now firmly on your side? At one point, President Trump was saying, I'm neither on one side nor the other. I'm trying to mediate. Do you feel that after your recent meetings, the U.S. is clearly on your side?And will that result in more concrete support?

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen:  Should I start?

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: Please.

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: So, when we are talking about enlargement, you are totally right. It demands unity and 27 votes. But there is a lot of things we can do, even if we cannot convince Viktor Orban to open the first cluster. So, there are so many things that has to be solved and changed and decided upon before the day where you can actually enter the European Union, like for all candidate countries and all the countries who have entered the European Union through history. So, I mean, if we are not able to convince Viktor Orban, then I simply think we just have to move on with all the work that has to be done between Ukraine and the European Commission.

 So, simply continuing our work. I think it is, when we're talking about reparation, it's totally understandable that there are a lot of questions. And this is, on a technical level, it's quite creative, but it's also quite difficult.

 I'm sure that the Commission will be able to answer all the questions. And at the same time, this is on a more political level or from a more political perspective. What is the alternative? Because unfortunately, we haven't been able to finish this war. Us standing here wants peace more than anything else. Russia doesn't. So, the war will probably continue.

Unfortunately, you have to run your armed forces. It's extremely expensive, extremely expensive. And it's not possible for Ukraine to do that on your own, of course. So, it's up to the rest of Europe, because I think we have to look at Ukraine as the first line of defense. So, everything we do in Ukraine is about also defending ourselves. So, for me, it's very clear that we need to find a way of financing. And if it's not this way with reparation loan, I haven't heard any other ideas that will have as much impact as this idea. So therefore, what we do now from the meeting we had yesterday until the next meeting in the council is to find answers to all the technical questions and issues. And then I think we will be ready to take a decision. And I know that the government in Belgium finds this very difficult, but my hope is and my belief is that we will be able to find a solution that will get support from all 27 countries.

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: We do our best to have United States on our side. What can I say? Politically, diplomatically, and of course, on the battlefield. On the battlefield, our soldiers, they are heroic people, and they have to stand and not make steps back. It's very difficult. It's very painful. It's a big tragedy, this war. But to show our strong position. It has big influence really on reality, which is in the United States. Because when Putin lied to President Trump, his team, and the sets around different channels, they had connections, lied that they are occupying our territory, that they will occupy us, and that in one month they will be in Pokrov, then in two months they will occupy all the eastern parts of our country, then they will go to Kharkiv or to Dnipro, to Kiyv in three months, four months. They showed some maps, something strange, and et cetera. I saw a lot of these things. So, you have just to break all these narratives. That's what our soldiers, I'm very thankful to them, that's what our soldiers. I'm very thankful to them that what our soldiers do and that what our team diplomatically does.

Journalist (Freedom TV): Two questions for President. Of course, there is more urgent needs of Ukraine but maybe you already discussed the possible participation of Ukraine in flagship project of defense of Europe, of this common project that you discussed yesterday with the European leader, and questions for Prime Minister to close the topic of frozen assets. Could you say after this two-day discussion that you became closer, one step or two steps closer, to adopt this decision about reparation loan? Thank you.

Statsminister Mette Frederiksen: Well, when it comes to the reparation loan, we need at some stage to take an official formal decision. We cannot do that in an informal council meeting as we had yesterday. But what we can do during days like these in Copenhagen is to have discussions and to go deeper into the substance. And that is what we have tried to do together.

So yes, I think we have moved closer, but we haven't, I mean, we are not there yet to conclude and to take a decision, but that was not the plan for these days. No, because it's an informal meeting, and we don't take decisions. So, the idea is to take decisions later on, but to prepare them, and to have the political decisions. And that is exactly what we have been doing. And I think it has been it has been quite good.

The other question about including or to have Ukraine integrated in a flagship project or in this idea of building a kind of a drum ball, I would I would let the president answer.

 But I would just say from a from a European Union perspective, it's impossible to build up the needed capabilities to secure Europe without Ukraine, because you are unfortunately the specialists. So, in one way or another, I hope that we will be able to have your experiences, that we can learn from your soldiers and from your experts. And if we want to secure Europe, if we want to rearm Europe, I think we have to think Ukraine as a part of this rearming from the very beginning.

Præsident Volodymyr Zelenskyj: Because of the war experience, we can be or we, I mean, we will be the driving force of this project, in any case. We are at the very beginning of this discussions. I mean, we are in beginning of public discussions.

 Of course, step by step, we understand how to organize this project. But this is a big, big work. Yes, for this we need experience. We need to share experience. And it's fair, and I mean, this is just a decision because countries of Europe, yes, like such strong partners, close partners like Denmark, helped us and continue doing this from the very beginning of the war. And of course, they put money, they put strength to our army from the very beginning and supported our people. And of course, we made a lot of new developments according for such a volume of support. And of course, we will share this this knowledge this experience with our partners but it's a big work just to share experiences, technologies, training missions, a lot of things.