Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) Oleksiy Danilov met with a delegation of the Atlantic Council led by John Herbst, Director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center and former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine, the press service of the NSDC said on Thursday.

“During the meeting, the parties discussed the current security situation in the region and in the world, exchanged views on global development trends, and outlined areas for deepening bilateral cooperation,” a message posted by the NSDC press service reads.

As reported, the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine expressed gratitude to the American side for supporting our country on its way to victory in the aggressive war unleashed by russia. According to Danilov, quoted by the press service, at the beginning of russia's full-scale invasion, many global think tanks "thought we would not survive," but Ukraine "proved the opposite."

According to the Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, it is important not only for Ukraine to win the war, but also to "win the peace", and the support of partners is essential. "We will fight as long as necessary, because we are responsible for the future of our country, and now we have a chance to build a new country," Danilov added.

The parties also touched upon the issue of countering russian disinformation. According to Danilov, "russian-language TV channels around the world are not about freedom of speech," as "the vast majority of them are run by russian special services." To combat russian disinformation, stronger coordination between partners is needed, emphasized Danilov, noting in this context the relevance of cooperation with the Center for Combating Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine.

The delegation also included: Vice Chair of the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, former U.S. Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs (2001-2009) Paula Dobriansky; Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council Adrian Karatnycky; Senior Fellow in the russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine (2016-2019) Marie Yovanovitch; Chair of the International and Defense Practices at BGR Group, former U.S. Permanent Representative to NATO (2013-2017) Douglas Lute; Professor of International Diplomacy at Columbia University Stephen Sestanovich; Professor of History at the University of Virginia Philip Zelikow; Deputy Director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center Shelby Magid; and Atlantic Council Representative in Ukraine Myroslava Luzina.