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Vienna ready to host talks on Donbass, says Austrian chancellor

According to the chancellor, Austria has always actively contributed to a dialogue

VIENNA, September 15./TASS/. Austria is ready to suggest Vienna as host for the talks on the settlement in the east of Ukraine if Ukraine and Russia approve this, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said on Tuesday after talks with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky in Vienna.

According to the chancellor, Austria has always actively contributed to a dialogue, "We are familiar with this issue. If there is a possibility to make a contribution, we are always ready. The decision depends, of course, on the Ukrainian and Russian sides, but we are always ready to contribute," he stressed.

At their joint news conference, President Zelensky, for his part, said "it is too early to discuss" the issue at the moment, since all participants in the process of negotiations are waiting "for the stabilization of a difficult situation in Minsk".

Nationwide demonstrations have engulfed Belarus following the August 9 presidential election. According to the Central Election Commission’s official results, incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko won by a landslide, garnering 80.10% of the vote. After the results of the exit polls were announced late on August 9, mass protests erupted in downtown Minsk and other Belarusian cities. During the early post-election period, the rallies snowballed into fierce clashes between the protesters and police.

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