Foreign Minister of Iceland Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson met President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko and the country’s foreign minister, Pavlo Klimkin, in Kiev yesterday evening. Gunnar is on a two-day official visit to Ukraine.
The meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs and Foreign Minister of Poland Radoslaw Sikorski, a press release from the Icelandic Foreign Ministry stated.
“It is of utmost importance that Ukraine can develop as an open democracy and exist in harmony with all its neighboring states. At the meeting we discussed how to solve the struggle in the eastern part of the country and guarantee peace and safety for all of the country’s inhabitants,” Gunnar revealed.
Gunnar stressed the importance of a ceasefire and that opposing forces negotiate a peaceful solution as soon as possible.
Separatists in the eastern part of the country have not expressed their willingness to negotiate, which is a matter of grave concern, the minister stated.
He encouraged Russian authorities to help persuade separatists to stop fighting and take part in peace negotiations.
Gunnar iterated that Russia’s occupation of Crimea is at odds with international laws. “It is in Iceland’s interest that international laws are always respected. This is why the events in Ukraine in the past months are so important to us. With my visit I want to highlight that the Icelandic voice will be heard when it comes to defending international laws and regulations.”
At the meeting Gunnar also mentioned Iceland’s intention to support Ukraine in energy matters.
