I had a good meeting with the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella. I expressed gratitude for Italy’s steadfast support of Ukraine and its clear and principled stance regarding just and lasting peace and the importance to work closely with international partners to achieve this goal. I appreciate Italy’s positive view of Ukraine’s integration into the EU and NATO as essential components of the broader European security system. I underscored that Ukraine’s integration into existing, functioning security structures is not only the most effective solution but also the most cost-efficient for all partners. Ukraine highly values Italy’s unchanged position on maintaining and enforcing sanctions against Russia, which unleashed war in the centre of Europe. We also discussed the sensitive issue of the return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia—thousands of young lives whose futures have been shattered by Russia’s war. We have to restore their futures and do everything possible to ensure they, like all children, can live happily. I also expressed gratitude to Italy for its care and support of Ukrainian orphans currently residing in Italy due to the Russian war. Additionally, I extended an invitation to President Mattarella to visit Kyiv, and I look forward to continuing this strong partnership.