EU prepares for potential visit by Ukraine's Zelenskyy on Thursday, say officials

Brussels, Belgium: The EU is preparing for a potential visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to Brussels on Thursday to meet the bloc’s leaders and address parliament, officials said Monday. European Council chief Charles Michel has invited Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to take part in a “future summit” of the 27 EU nations, his spokesman said Monday. Zelenskyy is invited “to participate in person” at a Brussels summit, the spokesman said in a tweet, adding that, for security reasons, “no further information will be provided”. A source at the European parliament said there was the “likelihood of an extraordinary Plenary Session on Thursday, 9 February with the presence of Volodymyr Zelenskyy”. Two separate parliamentary sources confirmed the invite on condition of anonymity. The leaders of the 27 EU member states will be in Brussels on Thursday for a planned summit. If it goes ahead, the visit would be the first made by Zelenskyy to the seat of the EU since Russia invaded his country almost one year ago. The Ukrainian leader has so far made one only trip abroad since Moscow launched its all-out assault on 24 February, visiting Washington in December. Officials said there was no final confirmation Zelenskyy would come and that his potential arrival was being kept under tight wraps. The Ukrainian presidency did not confirm the visit. Last week, Zelenskyy met top EU officials in Kyiv to push the bloc to speed up Ukraine’s bid to join. The EU has committed tens of billions of euros towards helping Ukraine withstand the Russian onslaught. Zelenskyy has warned that Ukrainian forces are facing an increasingly difficult fight in the east of the country as Russia seeks to claim more territory in its grinding offensive. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.