October 9, 2015

October 14, 2014

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Last year, on October 14, 2014, following talks in Paris between U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov, Mr. Kerry issued a press statement, stressing the U.S. and the European Union’s commitment to “Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

“We discussed Ukraine and the need for the full implementation of all of the 12 points of the September 5 Minsk agreement. …The shooting around Donetsk airport and other parts of eastern Ukraine has to stop. Foreign forces and weapons need to be withdrawn. Hostages – all hostages – need to be released, and that includes the pilot Nadiya Savchenko. And sovereignty has to be restored along the Ukrainian-Russian international border, and that border needs to be closed and held accountable.”

The press statement also congratulated Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada on its passage of anti-corruption legislation and the judicial reform package. These reform measures were a sign, Mr. Kerry added, that the Ukrainian people call for real change and for an accountable government. Now, the hard work comes of implementing that legislation, as well as “other critical reforms that will transform Ukraine into a modern European state that will meet the demands of Ukraine’s people as well as the expectations and hopes of the international community.”

Mr. Kerry explained to Mr. Lavrov the importance of the legitimacy of votes in the occupied territory of the Donbas, noting, “Any efforts to hold independence referenda in Luhansk and Donetsk at this time would be a violation of the Minsk agreements and the results will not be recognized by Ukraine or by the international community.”

With winter approaching, Mr. Kerry emphasized the need to conclude gas talks between the EU, Russia and Ukraine to assure Russia’s reliable supply of fuel to both Ukraine and the rest of Europe.

Source: “Kerry on talks with Lavrov,” The Ukrainian Weekly, October 19, 2014.

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