At the suggestion of Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, the foreign ministers of the European Union met with their Ukrainian counterpart Vadym Prystaiko in Luxembourg during the meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council.
Reinsalu stressed that the unity of the European Union is vital for Ukraine, especially in light of the Normandy Four negotiations that will hopefully take place soon. “Ukraine has already made serious efforts to find a peaceful solution and it is our role to support them in every way, not increase tensions. It is crucial that Ukraine should not feel pressured to reach a quick compromise, instead, this should be felt by the real aggressor, Russia,” Urmas Reinsalu said.
According to the Foreign Minister, the West’s unilateral concessions to Russia constitute, above all, the weakening of the position of Ukraine in the peace process, and this should be avoided under all circumstances. According to him, it is vital that the peace process allows Ukraine to make decisions about its future freely, without external pressure for quick results. “The people of Ukraine have the right to make their own decisions at negotiations on issues that affect their future,” he stressed.
According to Reinsalu, Estonia supports initiatives aimed at ending the war in the Donbas region and returning occupied areas to Ukrainian control. “Hopefully, the agreement reached at the meeting of the tripartite contact group* will move Russia from symbolic steps to real action – the unconditional and complete implementation of the Minsk agreements,” he added.
Urmas Reinsalu also called on the European Union states to not recognise the expedited issuance of Russian passports to residents of Donetsk and Luhansk, and continue the consistent policy of non-recognition of the occupation of Crimea.
At the meeting, Vadym Prystaiko also gave an overview of the implementation of Ukraine’s ambitious reform programme.
* The so-called Steinmeier formula
Photos: https://newsroom.consilium.europa.eu/events/20191014-foreign-affairs-council-october-2019
Additional information:
Britta Tarvis
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Estonia
Communication Department
[email protected]
+372 5194 7045