President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday, February 8, said in his Telegram channel that Kiev and Paris have a common view on the current threats and challenges to the security of Europe and the world, and positively assessed the visit of his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
“During our meeting with our French colleague, the greatest attention was paid to the security of Ukraine, Europe and the world. I would like to state that we have a common vision of current threats and challenges. Therefore, the partnership between Ukraine and France in this area is very important today,” he wrote.
According to him, Macron’s visit to Ukraine is an expression of France’s support for the country. The Ukrainian leader noted: the French president assured that Paris is ready to continue to contribute to de-escalation and the achievement of peace, in particular, within the framework of the Normandy Four meetings.
According to Zelensky, the upcoming talks in Berlin at the level of political advisers to the leaders of the Normandy Format countries will pave the way for holding the Normandy summit at the highest level.
He emphasized that Ukraine highly appreciates the security support and economic assistance of France, pointing out that “these funds (€1.2 billion – Ed.) will be provided in addition to the macro-financial support already allocated by the European Union for the same amount and will be directed to specific development projects.
The meeting between Zelensky and Macron took place on February 8 at the Mariinsky Palace in Kiev.
The French leader, during a press conference following negotiations with his Ukrainian counterpart, said that Zelensky confirmed Kiev’s desire to implement the Minsk agreements. According to Macron, at the talks in Moscow, Russian leader Vladimir Putin also reaffirmed his readiness to abide by the Minsk agreements.
Earlier that day, Vladimir Putin urged Ukraine to comply with the Minsk agreements, in reference to the well-known proverb “If you like it, if you don’t like it, be patient, my beauty.” In response, Zelensky agreed that Ukraine is “beautiful,” but expressed dissatisfaction with Putin’s use of the pronoun “mine.”
Since 2014, Kiev has been conducting a military operation against the inhabitants of Donbass, who refused to recognize the results of the coup d’état and the new government in Ukraine. In this situation, Kiev has repeatedly blamed Moscow. Russia has repeatedly stated that it is not a party to the intra-Ukrainian conflict.
The peaceful settlement of the conflict in Donbass is based on the so-called Minsk agreements, which provide not only for a ceasefire, the withdrawal of weapons, amnesty, and the resumption of economic ties, but also for a deep constitutional reform in Ukraine, which should result in the decentralization of power, taking into account the special status of certain regions Donetsk and Lugansk regions. However, this plan remains unrealized so far.
Source: IZ
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
