Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet on Thursday in Kiev to discuss the situations in the war-torn region of Donbas and the Azov Sea, the Ukrainian presidential press service said on Tuesday in a statement.
KIEV (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 30th October, 2018) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet on Thursday in Kiev to discuss the situations in the war-torn region of Donbas and the Azov Sea, the Ukrainian presidential press service said on Tuesday in a statement.
"[The sides] will discuss urgent issues of bilateral agenda, first and foremost, specific steps aimed at further boosting the Ukrainian-German partnership. Special attention will be paid to the situations in Donbas, occupied Crimea and the waters of the Azov Sea as well as the Kerch Strait," the statement said.
Poroshenko and Merkel also plan on coordinating further steps to ensure that the Minsk peace agreements are implemented. In addition, the leaders want to discuss the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine as well as strengthening the energy security of Europe and Ukraine.
"During the talks, the parties will discuss, in particular, improving the trade, economic as well as investment cooperation between Ukraine and Germany along with increasing Germany's practical support for reforms in Ukraine," the statement said.
Merkel's upcoming visit to Kiev will be her second in the last four years.
The conflict in Donbas started in 2014, when Ukrainian authorities launched a military operation against the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics that refused to recognize the new government in Kiev, which came to power after what they considered to be a coup. Crimea has been targeted by Western sanctions since 2014, when the peninsula held a referendum and rejoined Russia as a result.
Earlier this year, tensions escalated around the Sea of Azov after Ukraine detained two Russian ships for sailing in Crimean waters. Russia described Kiev's move as "maritime terrorism" and ramped up patrols off its Azov coast, leading to Ukraine accusing Moscow of having tough policies on the detention and inspections of vessels.
