Zelenskyy, EU Council President Costa Discuss Ukraine's EU Integration and US-Mediated Prisoner Swap

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday he discussed joint work on Kyiv's European integration with European Council President Antonio Costa in a phone call on May 9, 2026.

Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to Costa for his greetings on Europe Day and for Europe's support in the war against Russia. "We will defend our independence and our people's right to freely choose their path. And in doing so, we will also defend the right of all European peoples to live as they themselves wish. Russia will not succeed in breaking Europe or fracturing it -- there have been many attempts, but all have failed. And none will succeed," Zelenskyy said.

Zelenskyy said Ukraine will "take its place as a full member of the European Union." He added: "We are preparing for the opening of clusters and further decisions." On May 4, Zelenskyy said during a meeting with Costa that he expected the swift opening of all negotiation clusters.

The leaders also discussed an agreement with Russia to carry out a 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner swap mediated by the US, as well as recent diplomatic steps.

Europe Day commemorates the Schuman Declaration of May 9, 1950, which proposed the European Coal and Steel Community, widely regarded as the first formal step toward the establishment of the European Union.