No concrete deal in talks between Kerry and Lavrov on Ukraine crisis
- 10 years ago
Talks between US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov ended on Sunday evening after four hours of negotiations to defuse tensions over Ukraine.
No decisions would be made on Ukraine without Ukraine stressed Kerry a point agreed on by Sergei Lavrov.
The two discussed the drawdown of Russian troops from border areas between Ukraine and Russia.
“Any real progress in Ukraine must include a pull back of the very large Russian force that is currently massing along Ukrainian’s borders and tonight I raised with the foreign minister our strong concern about his forces. We believe that these forces are creating a climate of fear and intimidation,” John Kerry told reporters.
But there was no indication of any agreement on the issue. Kerry said he told Lavrov the US still considered Russian actions in Crimea to be “illegal and illegitimate”.
The hastily arranged talks were held following a phone call between President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
No decisions would be made on Ukraine without Ukraine stressed Kerry a point agreed on by Sergei Lavrov.
The two discussed the drawdown of Russian troops from border areas between Ukraine and Russia.
“Any real progress in Ukraine must include a pull back of the very large Russian force that is currently massing along Ukrainian’s borders and tonight I raised with the foreign minister our strong concern about his forces. We believe that these forces are creating a climate of fear and intimidation,” John Kerry told reporters.
But there was no indication of any agreement on the issue. Kerry said he told Lavrov the US still considered Russian actions in Crimea to be “illegal and illegitimate”.
The hastily arranged talks were held following a phone call between President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.