On the eve of Ukraine’s Independence Day, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg took part in the inaugural summit of the Crimea Platform and met with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Schmyhal for working discussions in Kiev. Alongside the summit, he held bilateral meetings with Moldavian President Maia Sandu and with his counterparts: Mevlüt Çavuşoglu from Turkey, Bujar Osmani from North Macedonia, and Đorđe Radulović from Montenegro, as well as the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, Marija Pejčinović Burić.
The Crimea Platform, as an advisory and coordinating forum, shows that the illegal annexation of Crimea remains in the international spotlight even after seven years:
We do not accept the fact that Europe’s borders have been shifted. We cannot look away when Russia stockpiles arms in Crimea, threatens freedom of navigation, infringes human rights and persecutes Crimean Tatars. International law is and remains a red line that must not be crossed,
says Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg. Austria, he notes, is fully on board with the EU sanctions against Russia in conjunction with Crimea and eastern Ukraine.
The current ceasefire in eastern Ukraine is the longest since the start of the crisis. This is positive, although isolated incidents have once again occurred in recent weeks:
The past few years have taught us that peace can be deceptive. In particular, for the sake of the population along the contact line, all of the parties must do their utmost to find a sustainable solution,
says Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg.
It is due to Ukraine’s courage and initiative, he says, that some progress has been made – for instance, an exchange of prisoners and the rebuilding of the bridge in Stanitsa Luhanska. Unfortunately, Russia has not shown the same commitment and willingness to resolve conflicts like Ukraine yet. Despite deep divisions, a dialogue must be maintained:
There is no doubt that the EU’s relations with Russia have reached a historic low. Nonetheless, Russia is and remains our largest neighbour – dialogue is necessary especially when there are diverging opinions.
Following another stop in Lithuania, Foreign Minister Schallenberg will welcome his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Vienna on Wednesday.
