According to Podolyak, today’s negotiations were “very difficult” because of the very tough positions of the parties. Ukraine, as Podolyak noted, seeks to establish peace in Donbass as soon as possible, and Russia is trying to move away from the discussion of the essence and go into the discussion of the parties to the conflict.
“A very tough exchange of views took place. No matter how hard the Russian side tries to contradict the positions of the international community, international organizations, mediating countries, it does not matter. the fact remains – the parties to this conflict are Ukraine and Russia… This fact cannot be ignored simply because you want to. And you can’t replace the obvious either, “he said.
According to Podolyak, it is fundamentally important for Ukraine that the settlement in Donbass is discussed by the parties that can be responsible for their promises, that is, Ukraine and Russia, with the mediation of Germany and France.
“And although we have the full support of the mediators – Germany and France, the Russian side also reduced this meeting to challenging the undoubted and principled position that the Donbass issue should be discussed by the parties to the conflict. As you can see, this position is supported by the entire civilized world, but not by the Russian side. Therefore, in principle, there are no solutions yet.“, – explained the representative of the OP.
At the same time, Podolyak assured that the talks would continue, both in the Normandy format and in the Trilateral Contact Group.
“The unconditional interest of Ukraine is a ceasefire and ensuring the stability of silence at the front. This is, first of all, in the interests of the people who live in Donbass and suffer the most from the war. Russia must show its responsibility for the implementation of this clause of the Minsk agreements, “he stressed.
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