Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba held a phone conversation with Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs of the French Republic Jean-Yves Le Drian, according to the press center of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Dmytro Kuleba expressed his condolences to his French colleague in connection with the recent attacks in France, the victims of which were innocent people.
The ministers discussed the dynamics of diplomatic efforts within the framework of the Normandy format for a peaceful settlement of the Russian-Ukrainian war in Donbas. The French minister gave a positive assessment to Ukraine’s efforts to create prerequisites for progress in the settlement of conflict and stressed the invariability of Paris’s position on supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.
Dmytro Kuleba told his French colleague about the initiative to create the Crimean Platform, an international format that consolidates the efforts of the international community to de-occupy Crimea and protect human rights under the temporary Russian occupation: “The international community needs to take a comprehensive look at the problem of the illegal occupation of Crimea and its consequences.”
Dmytro Kuleba invited France to take an active part in the work of the Crimean platform. Le Drian expressed gratitude for the invitation and assured that the principled position of France regarding non-recognition of the attempt to annex Crimea will continue, as will the corresponding policy of restrictive measures towards Russia. In this regard, the French side will consider information about the launch of the Crimean platform.
The ministers noted positively the growing dynamics of bilateral cooperation in many sectors, in particular the increase in trade and investment. They confirmed their intention to hold a meeting of the Ukrainian-French intergovernmental commission on economic cooperation by the end of 2020, which will provide conditions for increasing French investments in the Ukrainian economy.
The interlocutors separately discussed the prospects for Ukrainian-French cooperation in Africa, in particular in the field of security, trade and investment.
A separate topic of conversation was Ukraine’s European integration. Le Drian commended the outcome of the successful Ukraine-EU summit and reaffirmed Paris’s commitment to further support Ukraine-EU relations on the basis of the summit’s agreements. Dmytro Kuleba noted the importance of further integration of the economies of Ukraine and the European Union, as provided by the Association Agreement: “I am deeply convinced that in the modern world, especially against the backdrop of a pandemic, Ukraine and the EU are natural partners for building a strong European economy”.
The ministers paid special attention to the topic of systemic reforms in Ukraine on the basis of the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU. Dmytro Kuleba told his French colleague about the devastating consequences of the sad decision of the Constitutional Court of Ukraine for anti-corruption reforms in our state and assured that the President and the Government of Ukraine are determined to protect the effective operation of the anti-corruption infrastructure and other reforms.
In turn, Le Drian noted that France supports the determination with which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy began to act in this situation.
Le Drian accepted the invitation made by Dmytro Kuleba to visit Ukraine to discuss the entire range of bilateral issues.
Read also: U.S. ready to cooperate in creation of Crimean Platform.
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