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Putin set to embrace closer ties between EU and Ukraine

2014-02-14 50 Dailymotion

Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Germany’s visiting foreign minister that he would welcome closer economic ties between the European Union and Ukraine.<br /><br />German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier met Putin and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Moscow.<br /><br />Putin’s reported remarks appear to contradict Lavrov’s earlier comment accusing the EU of looking to create a “sphere of infuence”. <br /><br />Lavrov said the EU is putting Ukraine under pressure to choose closer ties with the bloc at the expense of relations with Russia.<br /><br />As protesters continued to maintain a presence in Kyiv’s Independence Square, the German and Russian ministers discussed the possibility of mandating an international organisation to mediate between the conflicting sides in Ukraine.<br /><br />Germany sees the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), which counts Russia, Ukraine and the EU countries as members, as best-placed for this role. Ukraine would need to specifically request such mediation.

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