The Verkhovna Rada Member who addressed the NATO PA members from the frontline had to break off from talking and flee to the shelter as the emergency alarm went off

Press release, 29 May 2022 

At the end of the report by Oleksey Reznikov, Minister of Defence of Ukraine, Mariana Bezuhla, Member of the National Security Committee of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, joined the meeting of the Defence and Security Committee of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO PA) live from the frontline.

Ms Bezuhla vigorously described the situation on the frontline to the NATO PA members and named the successes of Ukrainian soldiers in withstanding the enemy in specific areas of Ukraine. Like Mr Reznikov, she emphasised that Russia’s aggression targets not only Ukraine but also the entire democratic world.

Ms Bezuhla said that it was a crucial moment for the century-long history of the free Europe: ‘We have experienced several wars in this historical period, and the war waged now challenges the whole international order. The attack on Ukraine is just a single objective, and the attack on other states is just a question of time.’

Experienced as a servicewoman, Ms Bezuhla also underlined the importance of sanctions against Russia and said that ‘just because no sanctions have been delivered in time, Ukraine now pays a dire cost of thousands of victims and we have thousands of problems caused to the overall European security...’ At this point, Ms Bezuhla suddenly had to stop her address and flee to the shelter because a rocket alarm went off. These are the realities of Ukraine today.

Please find the address by Mariana Bezuhla to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly HERE.

Jolanta Anskaitienė, Adviser, Press Office, Information and Communication Department, tel. +370 5 239 6508, e-mail: [email protected]