![На факультеті міжнародних відносин відбувся круглий стіл, присвячений питанням національної безпеки](/sites/default/files/styles/width_862/public/2022-03/Screenshot%202022-03-22%20170819.jpg?itok=o-tisFva)
Nowadays, the military aid of the West and NATO to the Ukrainian army, closure of the airspace, and Ukrainian citizens’ protection are the most urgent problems to be solved in the context of the Russian aggressive war against Ukraine.
At the public level, the significant help of our "sister-country” Poland is worth appraising. Poland was the first to warmly welcome and give shelter to millions of Ukrainians on its territory. Every day, Ukrainian refugees receive considerable support in almost every country in the European Union (EU). Europeans sympathize with our citizens and admire the strength of the Ukrainian army.
![На факультеті міжнародних відносин відбувся круглий стіл, присвячений питанням національної безпеки](/sites/default/files/inline-images/Screenshot%202022-03-22%20170750.jpg)
The European Peace Mechanism, developed by the European Union last year, is the main financial instrument for the EU to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine in combating aggression of the Russian Federation. The EU Council has recently decided to allocate EUR500 million from this fund to provide the Ukrainian army with equipment and tools that will help in the fight to preserve the territorial integrity and sovereignty of our state and protect civilian population. The lion's share of these funds (EUR 450 million) is spent on the purchase of lethal weapons (which is unprecedented in EU practice), and the rest – on protective equipment and fuel.
![На факультеті міжнародних відносин відбувся круглий стіл, присвячений питанням національної безпеки](/sites/default/files/inline-images/276057744_256646249901622_4388212150968389753_n.jpg)
However, despite the significant support and wide-range assistance that our army and state receive from many countries around the world, the Ukrainian society is increasingly worried about: Why isn’t Ukraine a NATO member yet?"; "Why is NATO not closing the skies over Ukraine?"; "What is the future of the Ukraine's recent application for EU membership?" Students of the Faculty of International Relations of Lesya Ukrainka National University and SUNY American University (Brockport) had the opportunity to clarify these and other issues of Ukraine's national security during a panel discussion on March 21, a part of a virtual international exchange project “Ukraine-US: Discussion of Accession Barriers to the EU”.
![На факультеті міжнародних відносин відбувся круглий стіл, присвячений питанням національної безпеки](/sites/default/files/inline-images/276323738_287797076764962_3299433195982088445_n.jpg)
It is important that students had a chance to hear the answers directly from James Mosher, a diplomat and an official political representative of the United States at NATO Headquarters. Experts in the discussion were Olena Kovalchuk, Professor of General Pedagogy and Preschool Education, Andrii Boyar, Professor and the Head of the Department of International Economic Relations and Project Management at Lesya Ukrainka University, and from the American side, Steve Zurek, Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and International Relations at the State University of New York.
Video recording of the discussionis available at http://surl.li/bppyf
Olena KOVALCHUK,
Professor at the General Pedagogy and Preschool Education Department;
Andrii BOYAR,
Professor and Head of the International Economic Relations and Project Management Department