Kyiv has become a "true frontline city" as Russia's aerial campaign against Ukraine intensifies, according to the European Union's ambassador to the country, Katarína Mathernová. In an exclusive interview with Euronews, she warned that relentless attacks are increasingly disrupting everyday life in the capital just as winter approaches.
Mathernová, who has been based in Ukraine since September 2023, said the situation has deteriorated sharply since late August, when Russia began launching frequent daytime strikes alongside its overnight bombardments. "What happened since the end of August of this year is that Kyiv became a true frontline city," she told Euronews' Europe Today programme.
Air-raid alerts now force children to interrupt lessons and seek shelter, doctors to suspend procedures, and metro services to halt. Attacks on bridges have further complicated movement across the capital. "The situation is very, very, very difficult and the winter is not here yet," Mathernová warned.
She pointed to recent strikes on the National Academy of Sciences, a hospital near the EU delegation, and a kindergarten in central Kyiv in September, accusing Russia of routinely violating the laws of war. "Let's remind ourselves that attacking civilian targets is a war crime. It goes against the laws of war," she said. "The war crimes are happening on a daily basis."
Russia has increasingly deployed faster, jet-powered drones, adding new challenges for Ukraine's air defences. The comments come amid mounting tensions between Kyiv and Washington, with Mathernová stressing that Europe has become Ukraine's most reliable source of military and financial assistance.
Europe's support remains steadfast
Having attended discussions between President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and European Council President António Costa, Mathernová said she had sought to convey the urgency of the situation facing Ukrainians. The EU now provides roughly three-quarters of Ukraine's financial support, she said, and European leaders remain determined to sustain that assistance while encouraging other partners to contribute more.
She also made clear that the bloc has no intention of easing sanctions against Moscow while the war continues. Asked about European support for Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries, Mathernová declined to comment on potential diplomatic consequences with Washington, but backed the position of EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, who has described such strikes as legitimate self-defence. "It's the fossil fuel industry that is fueling the war on the Russia side," she said.
Hungary rapprochement boosts accession hopes
Beyond military and financial aid, one of the most consequential aspects of European support is the prospect of EU membership. A recent meeting between Zelenskyy and Hungarian Prime Minister Péter Magyar in Brussels has raised hopes of further progress in Ukraine's accession talks. Mathernová, who did not attend the meeting, said public accounts suggested the talks had gone well, offering grounds for optimism after years of disputes between Kyiv and Budapest.
Earlier in the week, the EU opened two additional negotiating clusters, covering the internal market and competitiveness and inclusive growth, bringing the total to four out of six. "There are only two clusters left to open and hopefully that will be done before the end of the year," she said.
A new joint task force launched by EU Enlargement Commissioner Marta Kos and Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi will meet twice a week over the coming months to help Kyiv accelerate reforms, particularly on the rule of law and anti-corruption. For Mathernová, the political will to join the EU is already there; the challenge now is turning that ambition into concrete reforms. "I still think that all the technical work and all the preparation can be done by the end of the decade," she said.
That, however, would not necessarily mean membership by 2030. Ukraine's eventual accession would still require the agreement of all EU member states.
'The European Union will be stronger with Ukraine'
Mathernová also sought to ease concerns about the economic implications of Ukrainian membership, arguing that similar fears had accompanied previous rounds of EU enlargement. She recalled how the accession of Spain and Portugal had unsettled European wine producers, while the bloc's eastern enlargement in 2004 prompted anxieties over competition from agricultural producers and workers in the new member states.
Ukraine's vast agricultural sector and economic potential would inevitably raise similar questions, she acknowledged, but these could be addressed through negotiations, transitional arrangements and compromise. "The European Union will be stronger with Ukraine," she insisted.
