Terry Reintke, on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group. – Madam President, dear President of Ukraine Zelenskyy, dear colleagues and, most of all, dear friends in Ukraine, it has been a thousand days since Putin's illegal and unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which brought utter destruction and unbearable suffering to the people of Ukraine.

A thousand days, a sad milestone and at the same moment a reminder of our promise. We stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes: as long as it takes until peace finally becomes reality for Ukraine again. Trust me, it is us who are longing for peace, but the people who are longing for peace the most are the people in Ukraine. A peace on Ukraine's terms which allows the Ukrainian people to live in freedom and safety and not under the oppression of Russia's brutal colonial shackles.

Warmonger Putin will not stop this terror. He will send more soldiers to their death. He will use more weapons to bomb infrastructure, hospitals and schools. He will use the cold winter to try to freeze the Ukrainians into submission.

Putin does not obey international law. He is actually trying to move back to a time where Europe was ruled by empires, starting by building a Russian empire, threatening all those who want to live in peace and freedom in Europe. It's a weak man's big phantom pain of Russian tsars and Soviet rulers. Putin only recognises the right of the strongest, so we have to show him Europe's united strength.

The re-election of President Trump into the White House is another wake-up call for the European Union in this regard. We must move forward with renewed vigour. We have to step up our military support for Ukraine. Ukraine urgently needs credible security guarantees.

Also, the EU has to be able to defend itself and must become independent from dictators in terms of energy supply. We have paid a very high price on this continent because of our own short-sightedness in this regard. This is not just in our interest, but also in that of Ukraine. I'm speaking to our Ukrainian sisters and brothers, who are still suffering and who are not only defending their own freedom, but also our freedom here in Europe.

It might have been a thousand days, but be reassured: Europe will not let you down.