Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, has warned of the threat of further expansion of the conflict in the Middle East against the background of the confrontation between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas. 

Ursula von der Leyen said during a public lecture at the Hudson Institute that just as Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to wipe Ukraine off the map, so Hamas, with the support of Iran, wants to wipe Israel off the map. 

"Iran, Hamas' patron, only wants to fuel the fire of chaos. Russia, Iran's wartime customer, is watching carefully. Russia and Hamas are alike," von der Leyen stressed. 

"These terrorists, supported by their friends in Tehran will never stop. And so, Israel has the right to defend itself in line with humanitarian law. And in the face of this horror, there is only one possible response from democratic nations like us: We stand with Israel", she summed up. 

In the same speech, the President of the European Commission stated that the European Union and the United States should accelerate Ukraine's victory in the war with the Russian Federation by providing it with assistance. 

Earlier, von der Leyen stated that the conflict in the Middle East would not affect the EU's readiness to help Ukraine during the war launched against it by Russia.