Marking 250 days since Russia launched its full-scale attack on Ukraine, ALDE Party co-Presidents Senator Timmy Dooley and Ilhan Kyuchyuk MEP issued the following statement:

The ALDE Party affirms its steadfast support for the people of Ukraine and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and we applaud their continued courage in their fight for freedom against the unprovoked and unjustified Russian invasion.

We condemn in the strongest possible terms the indiscriminate air strikes all over Ukraine and the brazen Russian targeting of civilian infrastructure, to the detriment of innocent civilian lives.

We deplore the sham referenda and of the illegal annexation of further regions of Ukraine. Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson regions and Crimea are Ukraine. These acts are further violations of Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity and will never be recognised by the European Union and democratic leaders around the world.

The ALDE Party and its members will work with our partners in the European Union and democratic allies, the United States and NATO members, to further strengthen assistance for Ukraine.

We will fight for a doubling of the European Peace Facility budget to secure an uninterrupted EU assistance to Ukraine, including robust air defence capabilities.

As Ukrainian civilian infrastructure is under deliberate attack, we call on the European Commission to expand through the EU Civil Protection mechanism the support for Ukrainians lacking access to basic services, including water, electricity, and heating, and suffering from disrupted food supplies.

We call on the European Commission to prepare a major extension of sanctions' measures to be imposed on Belarus should Belarussian President Aleksandr Lukashenko continue to allow Russian troops into the country and should Belarussian troops join the invading forces.

The liberals across Europe remain fully committed to Ukraine’s European future, following the European Union’s decision to grant it an EU candidate status and will work tirelessly to support Ukrainian people in their desire to live in free, democratic, and prosperous Europe.

This photo of ALDE Party co-Presidents was taken during a visit to Kiev on 11 April 2022.