Our way is the road to the European Union and NATO, to peace and prosperity - President

“Our way is the road to the European Union and NATO, to peace and prosperity. We have saved the state, cemented its foundation and proved that we are able to gain victories on our path," President Petro Poroshenko said during the speech on the occasion of the Day of Unity of Ukraine and the 100th anniversary of the proclamation of the Act Zluky between the Ukrainian People's Republic and the West Ukrainian People's Republic.

At the same time, the Head of State noted that Ukraine was on the eve of important elections. "One hundred years of historical experience encourage us to draw the right conclusion from the past. We know about the unprecedented scale of the Kremlin's preparation for interference in elections. By the way, not only Ukraine, but also the whole Europe, the whole world face this challenge. There is no doubt about the wisdom of our people, about its unity on our path to the future," Petro Poroshenko said.

The President stressed that changes had already taken place in the country, in particular the revival of the Ukrainian army in an unprecedentedly short time. "Today, the Armed Forces of Ukraine are hundreds of thousands of properly trained, armed and well-equipped warriors trained under Ukrainian military traditions," he added.

"Our European course, despite Russia's active opposition on the diplomatic front, allowed us to ratify the Association Agreement with all the countries of the European Union and launch the DCFTA with the European Union. The EU has already become Ukraine's largest trading partner," the President said.

According to him, Ukraine is about to receive powerful investments and accelerate the pace of economic development. He said that he would talk about that in Davos at the meetings with heads of state and leaders of major world companies.

The President noted that the level of GDP growth in 2018 would amount to 3.4%. "This is not too much, but this is the maximum figure in the last seven years. Inflation dropped to 9.8%. It is still quite high, but it is the lowest figure in five years. Gold and currency reserves rose to almost $ 21 billion. This is a five-year maximum," he stated.

According to Petro Poroshenko, these dry figures mean that the worst is already behind. "The crisis caused by war, economic aggression and blockade of Russia retreats. Retreats thanks to the joint efforts of the authorities, society and business. The restoration of economic growth provides opportunities for the restoration of living standards. In a very short perspective, in a year or two, maximum three, the fruits of the reforms will become noticeable for the absolute majority of society," the President is convinced.

"Creation of the army and restoration of economic growth; association with the European Union and visa-free regime; decentralization and the Tomos; the course on joining NATO and the European Union - these are clear and systematic, consistent steps in line with our long-term strategy. And the transition to the European quality of life of Ukrainians is the main content of our state policy, which is based on the unity of our people," Petro Poroshenko stressed.

"Europe is high living standards and NATO is a reliable security guarantee," the President added.