Presidents Zelensky and Tusk Visit Front before EU – Ukraine Summit

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and President
of the European Council Donald Tusk visited the front line at the town of
Stanytsya Luhanska on Sunday, July 7. The Joint Forces Operation press service
notes that the two men were briefed on the current status in the area in both
social program and military terms, including the project to rebuild the
Stanytsya Luhanka bridge, which would greatly improve one of the few frontline
crossings for civilians in Luhansk. Presidents Zelensky and Tusk also examined
incontrovertible evidence of Russia’s military involvement in the fighting in
southeast Donbas. The front-line visit comes ahead of the July 8 opening of the
latest EU-Ukraine summit meeting to be held in Kyiv.

James Hydzik: While President Tusk is no stranger to the front, Sunday’s visit took
place under the shadow of recent comments by President Zelensky’s business
partner and campaign backer Ihor Kolomoisky denying any Russian military
presence along the line of contact. The signal cast by the Ukrainian government
with its emphasis on reiterating its possession of proof of the Russian
military presence, while pushing for improving conditions along the line of
contact show that the concerns regarding capitulation to the Kremlin are, for
now at least, unwarranted. While we do not expect any important changes to
Ukraine’s relationship with the EU during this summit, the added emphasis on
the social condition there will go down well with Zelensky’s supporters ahead
of the July 21 parliamentary elections.