Moscow will continue to insist on the incumbent Kiev authorities' respect for popular demands made in southeastern Ukraine, the launch of negotiations and the end to the military operation against the protesters, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
"We will seek tranquility and insist on the respect of Kiev leaders for the opinions and demands of the southeast and Ukrainian citizens who live there, as well as on negotiations aimed to de-escalate the situation rather than escalate it with the involvement of law enforcement authorities, moreover, the army, which is clearly prohibited by Ukrainian laws," Lavrov told a press conference in Hanoi on Wednesday following negotiations with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh.
Geneva meeting so far remains on agenda - Russian FM Lavrov
Moscow will continue to insist on the incumbent Kiev authorities' respect for popular demands made in southeastern Ukraine, the launch of negotiations and the end to the military operation against the protesters, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said.
"We will seek tranquility and insist on the respect of Kiev leaders for the opinions and demands of the southeast and Ukrainian citizens who live there, as well as on negotiations aimed to de-escalate the situation rather than escalate it with the involvement of law enforcement authorities, moreover, the army, which is clearly prohibited by Ukrainian laws," Lavrov told a press conference in Hanoi on Wednesday following negotiations with Vietnamese Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh.
Ukraine needs well-balanced Constitution to preserve unity - Lavrov
Head of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Lavrov, believes that the large-scale internal political crisis in Ukraine clearly showed deep-rooted discrepancies between the South-East and the West of the country as regards the choice of the vector of further development.
"This shows the instability of the previously selected model of government in Kiev. In fact, the unitary state has stopped working in Ukraine. Its foundations were shattered by a series of political disasters that were shaking the country for years. One of the main reasons of such situation is the absence of a balanced basic law in Ukraine, which adequately takes into account the interests of all ethnic and language groups and ensures the rights and interests of all the citizens of Ukraine," Lavrov said in an interview with the Arguments and Facts newspaper published on the Foreign Ministry website on Wednesday.
According to the Russian Minister, "it is impossible to consider the situation, when after each Presidential election the Constitution of the country fixing a particular form of government was changed depending on the desire of the victorious political forces, to be normal."
"Therefore, federalization is a way to ensure that each region feels comfortable and secured in his rights, traditions and traditional ways of life," Sergey Lavrov said. “All this should be reflected in the reformed Constitution, and the multi-ethnic Ukrainian society should treat it as a reliable foundation of the legal state meant for a long-term perspective. I am convinced that it will be difficult for Ukraine to preserve its unity and to solve urgent tasks aimed at overcoming the current severe crisis," he said.
"Of course, no one can dictate a scheme of organizing a state system to the Ukrainian side. But Ukrainians must start a dialogue and ensure its inclusive and comprehensive character. The idea is that all regions and political forces of Ukraine, without exceptions, should participate in it on an equal basis and have equal rights in solving essential issues," the Minister said.
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