He commented on the published on November 17 on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation confidential correspondence Russian Minister Sergei Lavrov with the heads of the foreign affairs agencies of France and Germany Jean-Yves Le Drian and Heiko Maas.
“Nothing in what they write to Minister Lavrov contradicts Ukraine’s position and does not weaken it,” Kuleba said.
The head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry noted that Lavrov “strategically does not want the Normandy format to work.”
“Tactically, this is ensured by the advancement of unrealistic conditions to Germany, France and Ukraine. In particular, for example, admit that this is a conflict between Ukraine and the so-called” DPR “and” LPR “, forget about the role of Russia. Russia has only the role of a mediator in this conflict This is a basic problem, and if it is solved, then we can move forward. But Russia is doing everything so that it is not solved, and constantly insists that only in the case of a direct dialogue between Kiev and Donetsk and Luhansk can we move forward, “Kuleba stressed …
According to him, in fact, this “will mean an indulgence of the Russian Federation.”
“France and Germany answer that this is not true, the role of Russia as a party to the conflict is fixed, and that this requirement is critically unconstructive,” Kuleba summed up.
In a letter dated October 29, Lavrov, in particular, called the preparation of a final statement a condition for a meeting of foreign ministers in the Normandy format and sent a draft of such a statement to Maas and Le Drian… It says, among other things, that Ukraine must stop “lawmaking activities” that violate the provisions of the Minsk Package of Measures, including the law about the state language, education and indigenous peoples’ rights.
In a reply dated November 4, the German and French ministers said that the RF draft contains many provisions with which they cannot agree, in particular, on organizing “a direct dialogue between Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk.” In addition, in the opinion of the foreign ministers of Germany and France, some points of the Russian project go far beyond the framework of the Minsk agreements. At the same time, Maas and Le Drian called for a meeting of foreign ministers in the Normandy format on November 11 as the basis for a future summit of the leaders of Germany, France, Ukraine and the Russian Federation.
Lavrov, commenting on the proposals of Berlin and Paris, stressed in a letter dated November 6 that the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and the activities of the OSCE mission in Donbass is impossible without a direct dialogue between Ukraine and the terrorist organizations “DPR” and “LPR”.
On November 16, Lavrov warned Meuse and Le Drian in a letter that the correspondence between the ministers would be published on the website of the Russian Foreign Ministry. The reason for this was joint statement by the Foreign Ministers of Germany and France following the meeting with Kuleba on November 15.
The Foreign Ministries of France and Germany were outraged by the publication of the correspondence with the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation. Lavrov stated that he was “got”… The Kremlin called the publication of the correspondence “brilliant step”.
Straightaway after the annexation of Crimea in 2014, Russia launched an armed aggression in eastern Ukraine. The fighting is between the Ukrainian Armed Forces on the one hand and the Russian army and Russian-backed militants who control parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions on the other. Officially, the Russian Federation does not recognize its invasion of Ukraine, despite the facts and evidence presented by Ukraine.
Negotiations on the settlement of the conflict are being conducted within the framework of the trilateral contact group (TCG, Ukraine – OSCE – Russia) and the Normandy Four (Ukraine – Germany – France – Russia).
Ukraine wants to hold until the end of the cadence German Chancellor Angela Merkel summit of the leaders of the Normandy Four, said the head of the President’s Office Andrei Yermak. According to Kuleba, this issue was discussed during Merkel’s visit to Kiev in August 2021 year. He said that now work is in progress on the organization of the summit of the leaders of the Normandy Four.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky October 11 held a video conference with Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron. The interlocutors talked about steps for a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Donbass, and also discussed preparations for the next Normandy Four summit.
On the same day, Merkel and Macron held a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin… “The leaders instructed their political advisers and foreign ministries to intensify contacts and work along the lines of the Normandy Four,” the Kremlin said.
As a result of these negotiations, the Elysee Palace announced that the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the Normandy Four possible in the coming weeks… The Kremlin confirmed that preparations for the ministerial meeting are underway, but date of consultation is not yet known.
On November 1, Lavrov reported that Russia handed over proposals to partners about filling the new meeting in the Normandy format. France offered to host the summit on November 11, but Lavrov refused… He motivated his refusal by the lack of reaction to Moscow’s proposal on the final document of the meeting.
According to Kuleba, the proposals of the Russian Foreign Ministries to Germany, France and Ukraine on what the final document of a potential summit of foreign ministers in the Normandy format should be confirm that Lavrov continues to avoid such a meeting.
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