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Normandy Four summit possible if previous agreements are met — Russia's top diplomat

The high-ranking official said Russia sees no need in changing the Normandy Four format

© Mikhail Dzhaparidze/TASS

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BONN /Germany/, July 18. /TASS/. Another Normandy Four summit is possible if the agreements reached during the previous top-level meeting in Berlin are implemented, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday during a press conference on the outcomes of the talks with his German colleague Heiko Maas.

"As soon as we see that the decisions reached at the previous summit in Berlin held in October 2016 are implemented, I think we will be able to plan a new Normandy Four summit," Lavrov said.

"Of course, keeping in mind that it [the summit] will be organized by experts," Lavrov continued. "The meeting of advisers took place on July 12 in Paris. For the first time, a representative of Ukraine’s new leadership took part in it. In our estimates, there hasn’t been a breakthrough there, however, the atmosphere was constructive and we have reason to believe that unlike the regime of [former Ukrainian president Pyotr] Poroshenko, the new team will strive to implement the Minsk Agreements in an honest manner," the Russian top diplomat stressed.

Sergey Lavrov pointed out that Russia thinks that the Normandy Four format is a coordinated one and there is no need to change it. "We insist that the format has been well-coordinated and has a chance to yield progress in the new conditions," the diplomat claimed, commenting on Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s initiative to have the United Kingdom and the United States join in the negotiating process.

"US administration officials have already spoken on the subject, saying they see no need in that," the Russian top diplomat noted. "As far as I understand, France and Germany have a similar position."

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