The ECR Group welcomes the announcement that the Conference of Presidents of the European Parliament has awarded the Ukrainian people, their President, elected leaders and civil society in Ukraine with the 2022 Sakharov prize for freedom of thought.

This result sends a clear message of support and solidarity from the European Parliament to the people of Ukraine. The granting of this award also serves to honour all brave Ukrainians who have stood up to Russian aggression and are defending our common European values against dictatorship and oppression.

The brutality of Putin’s regime started in 2013 when young Ukrainians protested for European values and democracy. During the cold winter, they rallied against the kleptocratic Putin-Yanukovych alliance, which aimed to return to a Soviet-style dictatorship to the country.

President Zelenskyy and the people of Ukraine’s victory will be a living testimony that the struggle for values triumphs over brutal violence and oppression.