European Parliament President Roberta Metsola arrived in Kyiv on Sept. 17 to meet with top Ukrainian officials to discuss accession efforts, sanctions against Russia, and other issues.

Parliament Speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk welcomed Metsola as she arrived in Ukraine’s capital on her fourth visit since the start of the full-scale war in 2022.

“1,300 days since the start of the aggression, I am in Ukraine with (the European Parliament’s) strong message of support,” Metsola wrote on X.

The parliamentary leader is expected to hold meetings with President Volodymyr Zelensky, Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko, and Stefanchuk, Euractiv reported.

The visit comes as Ukraine calls for more resolute steps from Western partners in pressuring Russia to peace talks, primarily through harsher sanctions.

Last week, the European Parliament passed a non-binding resolution calling for a peaceful resolution of the war and asking the European Commission to launch the first cluster of accession talks with Kyiv.

While the Commission already backed the launch of the negotiations, the process is being blocked by the Hungarian government, which is seen as the most Kremlin-friendly within the EU.

The European Commission is also expected to soon unveil its 19th package of sanctions against Russia, targeting the country’s crypto assets, banks, and energy.

U.S. President Donald Trump called upon European countries to cut off Russian oil purchases as a condition for Washington also stepping up pressure.

After a call with Trump, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the bloc would seek to speed up the phase-out of Russian energy purchases, originally set for the end of 2027.

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