On 24 February 2026, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and António Costa, President of the European Council, went to Kyiv, Ukraine, to commemorate the victims of the war with Russia that started in 2022. Both presidents participated in the ceremony for Honouring the Fallen Heroes at the People’s Memorial on Maidan Independence Square, accompanied by Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, his spouse Olena Zelenska and other European leaders. Ursula von der Leyen and António Costa also participated in the Coalition of the willing ceremony during which they delivered a speech. They also took part in trilateral meetings with Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Denys Shmyhal, Ukrainian Minister for Defence and Yuliia Svyrydenko, Ukrainian Prime Minister. The visit demonstrated Europe’s support to Ukraine in showing cooperation, humanitarian aid and strategic defence. This video shows the press conference.