Statement by OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Miroslav Lajčák after meeting with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky

Bratislava, 14 June 2019 - Following a meeting with President Zelensky on 13 June, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Slovakia’s Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Miroslav Lajčák calls on the international community to support the Ukrainian President's constructive steps towards a peaceful resolution of the crisis in and around Ukraine. He also offers the full support of the Slovak Chairmanship in this endeavour.

In view of the strong mandate given to President Zelensky through his unambiguous electoral victory, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Lajčák and President Zelensky discussed a comprehensive set of actions proposed by the President and aimed at uniting the country for the benefit of all its citizens. Lajčák and the Ukrainian President also discussed concrete steps to ease the tensions in and around Ukraine, which would send a clear signal of readiness to seek a peaceful solution of the crisis. These include measures such as the overall improvement of living conditions on both sides along the line of contact, the urgent repair of the bridge in Stanytsa Luhanska, military disengagement and steps towards an exchange of detainees. Both agreed on the absolute necessity of a cessation of hostilities, the establishment of a permanent ceasefire and the full implementation of the Minsk Agreements.

Presenting a series of proposed confidence-building measures, Chairperson-in-Office Lajčák stressed the commitment of the Slovak OSCE Chairmanship to helping to improve conditions for people affected by the conflict in eastern Ukraine and to focusing on addressing their humanitarian situation.

While in Kyiv, the OSCE Chair also congratulated the former president of Ukraine, Leonid Kuchma, on his appointment as Ukraine´s representative to the Trilateral Contact Group and expressed his support to his work.