The Grand Chancellor of the Sovereign Order of Malta, Riccardo Paternò di Montecupo, delivered a video-message to the “Unity Defence and Security Strategy. Action Plan” Summit, convened by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky today, on the third anniversary of war in Ukraine.

I wish to thank the Ukrainian authorities for the kind invitation to this international summit. I take this opportunity to renew the support and the solidarity of the Order of Malta to the Ukrainian people, who have suffered heavily from the dire consequences of war as regards their living conditions, the state of the infrastructures and the social services, their health and the education of their children.

The Order of Malta has been providing humanitarian assistance to Ukraine for many years, especially after the outbreak of the war in February 2022.

In the first stages of the conflict, the Order of Malta assisted the refugees in the neighboring countries and in other hosting countries throughout Europe.

In the following period, the Order of Malta has been very active in providing social services to more than 60 centers throughout the country. Some of these services take care of people who have suffered from physical injuries and are in need of rehabilitation treatment. Another category, very significant in contemporary conflicts, is the care of persons that have suffered psychological traumas. The overall effort of the Order of Malta in Ukraine required an extensive work and deployment of resources, not only in terms of material support but also of professional skills and expertise. I wish to express my gratitude and appreciation the Ukrainian authorities for having facilitated our operations and to all our volunteers for their dedication and spirit of service.

We express our support to any effort that may bring peace to the Ukrainians and may lay the ground for the reconstruction of the country. Our historic neutrality prevents us from giving an evaluation about the conditions for peace. However they should be acceptable to all parties.

We hope that very soon the Ukrainian people may experience peace, stability, reconstruction instead of war, sufferings and devastation. The Order of Malta will continue to be aside the Ukrainians as long as it is needed.