This week, there was a major show of support from across the political spectrum for the Ukrainian state and victims of the Russian invasion. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke via video link to Members of the European Parliament, asking them to keep up that backing and help his country accelerate down a path towards joining the EU. In this programme we're joined by two MEPs to discuss the EU's involvement in this fast-moving crisis.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has said no progress on a cease-fire was made at talks with his Russian counterpart. The meeting in Turkey was the first at this level since Russia's attack on Ukraine began.

The European Parliament is demanding an end to the practice of countries selling EU citizenship.

Just over two weeks on from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Catherine Nicholson is joined by Polish MEP Roza Thun und Hohenstein and German MEP Helmut Scholz to discuss the European response to the crisis. The reception of refugees in the EU is a pressing issue; earlier this week the bloc's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced €100 million for immediate humanitarian help. MEP Scholz calls for a "clear answer" from the EU on how to help people in need, while questioning the militarisation of the response. To what extent should Europe help the Ukrainian military against the Russian army? And how can escalation be avoided as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky continues to plead for more help?

The European Commission and the UK's Market Authority each launched an investigation to see if a 2018 deal between Google and Meta aimed at distorting competition in the digital ad business.

At a top-level summit in Versailles, EU leaders have agreed to give Ukraine another half a billion euros in military aid. But they rejected the idea of fast-tracking Kyiv's EU membership bid.

Turkey is one of the many countries calling for calm in Ukraine. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says his government will relentlessly try to find a long-lasting ceasefire and Turkey has already hosted the first high-level peace talks between the Russian and Ukrainian foreign ministers. But Ankara is walking something of a tightrope because it's traditionally a friend of Ukraine and has been supplying drones to Kyiv. Yet it also depends on Russia for gas. Our Turkey correspondent Jasper Mortimer tells us more.

In mid-January, French presidential candidate Eric Zemmour said that English should no longer be used in EU institutions post-Brexit. However, English remains an official language of both Ireland and Malta. FRANCE 24's Georgina Robertson takes a closer look at what languages are spoken in Brussels.

"It cannot be that an autocrat attacks a sovereign country which has the right to the integrity of its territory." That's the firm response directed at Russia from the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. Speaking exclusively to FRANCE 24 about the war in Ukraine, the EU leader added that "democracy is standing up against autocracy and therefore we stand as one".

As people all around Europe feel the cost of living rise and see their bank balance ever more squeezed amid energy price rises, we're looking into proposals for ensuring meaningful minimum wages are paid to everyone around the European Union.

Some EU governments are pushing for an embargo on Russian oil and gas to punish Moscow for its war against Ukraine and force a Russian military withdrawal.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has expedited the "Strategic Compass" security strategy, which allows the European Union to form a rapid reaction force. Germany has offered to provide the "military core."