Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 created existential threat to Ukraine’s statehood. Ukrainians made a huge effort to protect their country against Russians and its foreign policy sustained international support for Ukraine. The research of Ukraine’s foreign policy is still limited due to the tendency to study Ukraine through actions of major powers and to underestimate Ukraine’s own actorness. The development of Ukraine’s foreign policy post-2022 Russian invasion gives a good chance to fill in this gap and contribute to Ukrainian studies. This article looks into Ukraine’s new foreign policy towards the EU and explains how Ukraine convinced the EU to support it so much during its war with Russia, e.g. via providing military and financial assistance, granting EU candidate status and introducing severe sanctions against Russia. This research is based on the analysis of original interviews with EU and Ukrainian policy-makers, official documents and media outlets. The core findings show both continuation of certain misperceptions, but also substantial improvements in the country’s foreign policy in relations with the EU and involvement of new actors, in particular Ukraine’s civil society at home and abroad, into foreign policy-making. This research confirms Ukraine’s subjectivity in relations with the EU and hints into ways of further improvements of the country’s foreign policy.
