Zelenskyy arrives in Spain for European Political Community summit

GRANADA, Spain — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in Spain to attend a summit bringing together the leaders of dozens of European countries, he said on social media.

“I arrived in Granada, Spain, to take part in the European Political Community Summit,” Zelenskyy wrote on X (formerly Twitter). The Ukrainian president said he would work “with partners on enhancing the European security architecture.”

Zelenskyy is seeking to shore up support in Europe just as U.S. domestic politics threatens aid flows to his war-struck country, and a few days after an American government shutdown fiasco over, in part, military aid to Ukraine.

“Ukraine’s key priority, particularly as winter approaches, is to strengthen air defense. We have already laid the groundwork for new agreements with partners and look forward to their approval and implementation,” Zelenskyy added on X.

Close to 50 European leaders are gathering in Granada for the summit of the EPC, an informal meeting to discuss regional issues.

It’s expected that EU enlargement, and the pushback against rapid expansion of the bloc, will feature high on the agenda ahead of an informal EU summit on Friday where leaders aim to agree on a statement about enlargement goals.

The EU is gearing up to open negotiations with Ukraine on its future accession to the bloc with a formal announcement expected as soon as December.