Tapes in colours of the Ukraine's national flag are wrapped around a tree near Yampil on February 6, 2023, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Photo by YASUYOSHI CHIBA / AFP)
Brussels: The EU is preparing for a potential visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Brussels on Thursday to meet the bloc's leaders and address parliament, officials said on Monday.
European Council chief Charles Michel has invited Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky to take part in a "future summit" of the 27 EU nations, his spokesman said on Monday.
Zelensky 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, February 9 with the presence of Volodymyr Zelensky".
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 Zelensky 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 February 24, visiting Washington in December.
Officials said there was no final confirmation Zelensky would come and that his potential arrival was being kept under tight wraps.
The Ukrainian presidency did not confirm the visit.
Last week, Zelensky 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.
Zelensky 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.
