“Charter of Support”: Ukrainians in France campaign ahead of snap parliamentary elections

The Association of Ukrainians in France has initiated a project to support Ukraine ahead of France’s upcoming snap parliamentary elections. Volodymyr Kogutyak, UWC Vice President for Western Europe and Vice President of the Association of Ukrainians in France announced that the Ukrainian community is calling on candidates to sign the Charter of Support for Ukraine.

“For the Ukrainian diaspora in France, this document will be proof that each candidate will support Ukraine until victory!” wrote Kogutyak.

The document outlines several key points: supporting Ukraine until victory, which includes the withdrawal of the Russian forces and the return of the country to its 1991 borders; providing humanitarian, economic, and military support; working to return Ukrainian children deported to Russia and prisoners of war; strengthening economic sanctions against Russia; and promoting Ukraine’s future membership in the EU and NATO.

“With this letter, I declare my unwavering support for Ukraine, a country attacked by Russia and currently fighting for the security of Europeans,” the Charter concludes. It is known that three candidates for seats in the French parliament have already signed the document.

“The main idea is not to confirm the position of those politicians who have been helping for 10 years, but rather to give new candidates a chance to think. Our priority is to hear the opinions of far-right deputies, who in the coming weeks could gain a majority in the Assembly and have their candidate as Prime Minister. As of today, their stance on Ukraine is unclear, and that is why, before some of them become deputies, we want a clear confirmation from them on whether they will or will not support Ukraine on key issues: armament, EU membership, NATO,” explained Kogutyak.

On June 9, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the dissolution of the parliament following his party’s defeat in the European Parliament elections. The snap elections in the country will be held on June 30 (first round) and July 7 (second round).