The leaders of Ukraine, France and Germany will hold three-way talks on Friday on Ukraine’s disagreement with Russia over the conflict in the eastern Donbass region, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a video on Thursday.
Zelenskiy will travel to Paris to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron and they will speak to German Chancellor Angela Merkel at a video conference.
The meeting would lay the groundwork for a meeting in the so-called “Normandy” format, he said, although he gave no indication as to whether such a meeting could take place.
The “Normandy” format talks involve the leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia and have not taken place since December 2019.
“… This is an important preparatory meeting for the Normandy format,” Zelenskiy said, adding that “the situation in Donbass is now under control.”
Ukraine and Russia have blamed an increase in violence in the conflict in eastern Ukraine, where Ukrainian troops have been fighting Russian-backed forces in a conflict that has killed 14,000 people since Kyiv, according to Kyiv.
Ukraine and its Western allies have accused Russia of a “challenging” build-up of troops near the eastern border of Ukraine and annexed Crimea.
Zelenskiy also thanked Turkey for its support, saying Ukrainian tourists should visit Turkey after Russia restricted travel there.
The Turkish government said earlier on Thursday that it did not take sides in the fight and supported a diplomatic solution. read more
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