Brussels 30.09.2023 “Odesa is such a beautiful city, with cultural and historical roots, it should be on the front pages of the newspapers for its cultural activities, vibrant multiethnic society, its beauty, its history. And instead of that, it is on front pages of the newspapers for this – for the barbaric attacks of Russia, its aggression, against the city – destroying the harbour, infrastructure and old churches” wrote in his remarks the EU top diplomat Josep Borrell after visiting destroyed cultural heritage of Odessa.

https://x.com/JosepBorrellF/status/1708106906273763786?s=20

“I’ve been witnessing the consequences of this war, how Ukraine and Odesa are paying high price for it. This is a good example of how Russia is trying to destroy Ukraine” the diplomat continued.

“And today’s anniversary is a moment to remember that some parts of Ukrainian territory, the regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson were illegally annexed to Russia, as Crimea was also illegally annexed before. And we at European Union we will support Ukraine in its fight to restore its territorial integrity”.

“My presence here in Odesa is to show how we are supporting Ukraine, from our military support, our economic support, through political and diplomatic activity, to look for the peace, but a just peace that preserves the territorial integrity and independence of Ukraine and I want to pay homage to all men and women of Ukraine who are fighting for it.”

However Josep Borrell was not upset by removing of the statue of the 18th-century Russian empress Catherine the Great, belonging to historic heritage of the city. The monument to the founders of the city of Odessa, also known as monument to Empress Catherine II of Russia and her subjects: José de Ribas, François Sainte de Wollant, Platon Zubov and Grigory Potemkin. Odessa is the third most populous city and municipality in Ukraine and a major seaport and transport hub located in the south-west of the country, on the northwestern shore of the Black Sea.