Foreign ministers of Ukraine and Estonia discuss EU's policy towards Russia
Date
2/20/2021 2:24:44 PM
(MENAFN- UkrinForm) Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Estonia Eva-Maria Liimets discussed the EU's policy towards the Russian Federation ahead of the EU's Council of Ministers meeting dedicated to this.
Kuleba noted two key facts that do not allow talking about a possible change in approach.
"The first fact: Moscow has not taken any constructive steps towards the normalization of relations, has not given any reason to talk about changing the current five principles of EU policy towards Russia. The second fact is that, while maintaining a constructive attitude, the EU must be ready to raise the price for Russia's violations of international law and human rights, Kuleba said, the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine reported following the first telephone conversation between the foreign ministers on February 19.
The Foreign Minister of Ukraine expressed the belief that the EU's human rights sanctions mechanisms should apply both to those responsible for the crackdown on the opposition and peaceful protesters in Russia and to those responsible for Russia's criminal activities in the temporarily occupied Crimea.
Kuleba informed Liimets on the security situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine and thanked Estonia for its continued support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as the EU sanctions regime against Russia.
The Ukrainian minister welcomed Estonia's decision to join the Crimean Platform and confirmed the invitation of President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky to President of Estonia Kersti Kaljulaid to attend its inaugural summit.
Kuleba praised the positive experience of Ukraine-Estonia cooperation in counteracting threats to international peace and security during Estonia's non-permanent membership in the UN Security Council and expressed confidence in further close cooperation.
The parties also discussed preparations for the second Global Conference for Media Freedom (GCMF21) to be held in Estonia this year and agreed that one of its important topics should be the fight against misinformation, in particular, based on Ukraine's experience it gained over the years of successful counteraction to Russian propaganda.
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