On four years of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and European contributions to a just peace and sustained security for Ukraine

B100143/2026

European Parliament resolution on four years of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and European contributions to a just peace and sustained security for Ukraine

(2026/2599(RSP))

The European Parliament,

– having regard to its previous resolutions on Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine,

– having regard to the Charter of the United Nations,

– having regard to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC),

– having regard to the Geneva Conventions,

– having regard to Rule 167(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A. whereas nearly four years ago, on 24 February 2022, the Russian Federation launched an unprovoked, unjustified and illegal war of aggression against Ukraine, in gross violation of the UN Charter and its own international commitments, including the Helsinki Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the Budapest Memorandum on Security Assurances; whereas Russian aggression against Ukraine started in 2014 with the occupation of parts of the Donbas region and the occupation and annexation of Ukraine’s Autonomous Republic of Crimea;

B. whereas 2025 was the deadliest year for civilians since the start of the full-scale invasion, with the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine (HRMMU) reporting more than 2 500 civilian deaths and over 12 000 injured, an increase of over 30 % compared to 2024; whereas since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, the HRMMU has documented at least 14 534 civilian deaths and over 38 000 injuries; whereas the actual number is expected to be much higher; whereas over 3.7 million Ukrainians remain internally displaced, while 5.7 million live abroad as refugees; whereas over 10.8 million people in Ukraine are currently in need of humanitarian assistance, with the UN estimating that it requires USD 2.3 billion for 4.1 million people prioritised for assistance in 2026 alone; whereas there is still a shortfall of USD 2 billion in the projected funding needs for 2026, with only 12 % funded thus far;

C. whereas intensified attacks by Russia targeting civilian energy infrastructure have caused months of prolonged disruptions to power, heating and the water supply around the country; whereas millions of people in Ukraine are trying to survive winter temperatures of -20°C with limited electricity, heating and running water; whereas Russia violated the one-week energy truce by launching 71 missiles and 450 drones against Ukraine overnight on 3 February 2026;

D. whereas civilians living near the front lines and in the territories occupied by Russia are facing the most severe humanitarian impacts; whereas Russian short-range drones remain the primary cause of civilian casualties in frontline areas; whereas in occupied areas Russia is intensifying its repression of residents, including by restricting access to basic services such as healthcare to Russian citizens, thereby effectively coercing Ukrainians into accepting Russian citizenship, which is against international law; whereas Ukrainians in occupied territories are being conscripted into the Russian army; whereas their private property is being seized by the occupying authorities;

E. whereas Russia continues to hold thousands of Ukrainian prisoners of war and unlawfully detained civilians in inhumane conditions, and is subjecting them to systematic torture and ill treatment, abuses that constitute war crimes and potential crimes against humanity;

F. whereas the environmental damage caused by Russia over the past four years has also had devastating consequences for Ukraine’s natural resources, critical ecosystems and people’s health, livelihoods and security;

G. whereas investigative reports by journalists have shed light on a growing campaign by Russia to bring people from countries such as Kenya, Botswana, Uganda, South Africa, Yemen, Syria, Egypt, Morocco, Iraq, Ivory Coast and Nigeria to Russia with the false promise of civilian employment or a support role in the army, only for them to be sent to die on the front lines in Ukraine; whereas reports indicate that many were made to sign military service contracts drafted in Russian, without the provision of a translation or the presence of a lawyer, and had their passports confiscated, with no option to return home;

H. whereas a second round of trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi among Russia, Ukraine and the United States commenced on 4 February 2026; whereas the escalation of Russian strikes targeting civilian critical infrastructure at the same time as these talks has once again cast doubt on Russia’s sincerity with regard to achieving a sustainable and lasting peace; whereas Europe has been excluded from participating in peace talks;

I. whereas President Zelensky has announced that Ukraine’s Western partners have agreed to security guarantees for Ukraine consisting of a multi-tiered response plan that would involve a European-led, US-backed military intervention in the event of repeated ceasefire violations by Russia; whereas a Coalition of the Willing led by France and the United Kingdom has agreed to deploy its troops in Ukraine after the ceasefire, though Russia has repeatedly rejected this plan;

J. whereas some Member States are still paying Russia for fossil fuels on a monthly basis, spending EUR 1.3 billion on Russian fossil fuels in December 2025 alone; whereas the EU remains the largest buyer of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) and pipeline gas, accounting for almost half (49 %) of Russia’s total LNG exports and 35 % of Russia’s pipeline gas exports; whereas in December 2025, France and Spain increased their imports of Russian LNG by 18 % and 27 % respectively;

1. Condemns in the strongest possible terms Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and demands that Russia immediately terminate all military activities in Ukraine, unconditionally withdraw all forces and military equipment from the entire internationally recognised territory of Ukraine and compensate Ukraine for the damage caused to its people, land and infrastructure;

2. Expresses its undivided solidarity with the people of Ukraine, fully supports Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders, and underlines that this war constitutes a serious violation of international law; welcomes, in this regard, the recent announcement by the Commission of EUR 145 million in humanitarian aid for Ukraine, which includes energy-related items; stresses, however, that more humanitarian support is needed for this year to address the immediate needs of people living near the front lines, of those who have recently been displaced and evacuated from high-risk areas, and of those who have been affected by strikes and require emergency assistance; calls on the Commission and the Member States to step up humanitarian support to Ukraine and to urge like-minded partners to do likewise;

3. Reaffirms Ukraine’s sovereign right to decide freely on its political, economic and security orientation, including its right to join international and intergovernmental organisations and alliances of its choosing; stresses that no external actor may impose limitations on Ukraine’s sovereign decisions regarding its membership of the EU and NATO;

4. Stresses that Ukraine’s accession to the EU constitutes a core element of Europe’s security architecture and a strategic investment in the continent’s long-term stability, resilience and security, and emphasises that EU enlargement must be recognised not merely as a technical process, but as a strategic and geopolitical priority in the current security environment;

5. Underlines the importance of accelerating Ukraine’s gradual integration into the EU single market, including through the conclusion of the Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of Industrial Products (ACAA) and through deeper customs cooperation; stresses that sectoral integration, in particular in the steel, chemicals, machinery and digital industries, will strengthen Ukraine’s economic resilience and contribute to the competitiveness and security of the EU;

6. Considers it vital that European leaders step up and take responsibility for guaranteeing the security of the continent in this crucial geopolitical moment and work with Ukraine and like-minded partners around the world to defend Ukraine, and by extension multilateralism, the rules-based order and international law; calls on the EU and its Member States, along with other European countries, and in cooperation with Ukraine, to develop a proactive and visionary strategy for the future of Ukraine; considers that given the relative stalemate on the battlefield, Europe needs to swiftly step up its military and diplomatic support to Ukraine to establish conditions for a just and sustainable peace agreement; asserts that Europe cannot afford to allow the future of Ukraine and the future security of the continent to be decided by Washington and Moscow; stresses the crucial importance of credible security guarantees for Ukraine and welcomes, in this regard, reports that the Coalition of the Willing has agreed to respond to Russian violations of a future ceasefire agreement with a European-led, US-backed military intervention;

7. Calls for the strongest possible acceleration of military assistance to Ukraine, with air and missile defence as the top priority, including the urgent provision of additional Patriot systems and interceptors, SAMP/T, NASAMS, IRIS-T and other air-defence capabilities necessary to protect civilians, critical infrastructure and energy facilities from Russia’s missile and drone terror; underlines, in particular, the need to strengthen missile defence against ballistic threats; stresses the fact that Ukraine’s other urgent needs include combat aircraft, long-range missiles, artillery systems and ammunition, electronic warfare systems, engineering equipment and drones, including systems capable of intercepting Shahed-type attack drones;

8. Underlines the importance of ensuring the proper training of Ukrainian military personnel under the EU Military Assistance Mission in support of Ukraine (EUMAM Ukraine) and calls for an expansion of its mandate, including the possibility to extend training activities to Ukrainian territory following a ceasefire, in order to strengthen Ukraine’s national training capacity; stresses the need to deepen cooperation under the SAFE instrument and the European Defence Industry Programme (EDIP) to integrate Ukraine’s defence industry into the EU defence industrial ecosystem, including through joint ventures, targeted investments and the localisation of production in Ukraine; calls on the Council to urgently resolve the deadlock preventing the operationalisation of the Ukraine Assistance Fund under the European Peace Facility, which is essential for the implementation of the EU’s long-term security commitments to Ukraine; underlines the importance of ensuring that Ukraine is swiftly made an associated country of the European Defence Fund (EDF) and calls for the rapid conclusion of the necessary negotiations to enable the participation of Ukrainian entities in EDF calls from 2026;

9. Calls on the EU and its Member States to scale up and institutionalise energy assistance to Ukraine, moving beyond ad hoc emergency support towards long-term mechanisms for the recovery, protection and modernisation of Ukraine’s energy system, as a contribution to civilian resilience, economic stability and European energy security;

10. Stresses that any peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia should prioritise Ukraine’s sovereignty, and justice and accountability for the war crimes committed by Russia; underlines the fact that a peace agreement will only be sustainable if it is based on justice and the protection of civilians;

11. Expresses its full support for the ongoing investigation by the Prosecutor of the ICC into the situation in Ukraine, based on alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide; condemns the US sanctions against the ICC, its prosecutors, judges and staff, which constitute a serious attack on the international justice system; reiterates its call on the Commission to urgently activate the blocking statute and on the Member States to urgently increase their diplomatic efforts to protect and safeguard the ICC as an indispensable cornerstone of the international justice system; reiterates its full support for the establishment of a special tribunal to investigate and prosecute the crime of aggression committed by the leadership of the Russian Federation against Ukraine; calls on the Commission and the Member States to step up support for the documentation of Russia’s crimes to help establish accountability in the future;

12. Strongly condemns the systematic deportation, forcible transfer and attempted assimilation of Ukrainian children by the Russian Federation, which constitutes a grave breach of international humanitarian law; calls for the immediate and unconditional cessation of these practices and the safe and unhindered return of all unlawfully deported Ukrainian children; expresses its support for the Bring Kids Back UA initiative and welcomes the work of the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children as a key platform for coordinated international action, including tracing deported children, verifying their identity, legal status and whereabouts, securing their return and pursuing accountability;

13. Reiterates that the Russian war of aggression and the targeting of industrial and energy infrastructure amounts to an ecocide that has caused severe and long-lasting damage to Ukraine’s environment, including the destruction of ecosystems and the contamination of water and soil; regards international recognition of these crimes as war crimes as crucial to ensuring Russia’s full legal accountability and Ukraine’s entitlement to compensation, and calls for the EU to give its support to a comprehensive environmental recovery strategy as part of Ukraine’s reconstruction; calls for the EU and its Member States to give full support to all initiatives aimed at documenting the environmental destruction caused by Russia’s war and to back efforts to establish accountability and secure compensation in foreign jurisdictions;

14. Emphasises that sanctions are having a clear impact on the Russian economy, but reiterates that the sanctions regime needs to be broader and its implementation stricter if it is to have the required effect of limiting Russia’s funds for its war of aggression; calls on the Commission and the Member States to prioritise without delay the implementation of further policies, over and above sanctions, to stop European money flowing into Russia’s war chest, in order to weaken Russia’s economy and its negotiating position; reiterates to this end its long-standing call for a full and immediate ban on all Russian fossil fuels imports to the EU as a strategic security priority; deplores the fact that some EU Member States are still relying on Russian fossil fuels nearly four years after the full-scale invasion; urges the Commission and the Member States to proactively work with like-minded partners around the world to escalate the pressure on the Russian economy;

15. Expresses concern about the growing number of foreign fighters in the Russian army who have been brought to Russia or to the front lines in Ukraine under false pretences; calls on the countries concerned to proactively warn their citizens of the dangers of travelling to Russia in connection with job offers that are either directly or indirectly linked to the Russian army; calls on social media platforms to take measures to prevent the abuse of their services for the purpose of conducting these deceitful recruitment campaigns;

16. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the President, the Government and Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, and the President, Government and Parliament of the Russian Federation.