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CIS executive secretary hopes Ukraine will continue CIS membership under new president

Sergei Lebedev says the CIS had never severed contacts with Ukraine

Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent State (CIS) Sergei Lebedev ITAR-TASS/Alexei Smyshlyayev

Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent State (CIS) Sergei Lebedev

© ITAR-TASS/Alexei Smyshlyayev

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MINSK, May 27. /ITAR-TASS/. Sergei Lebedev, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Commonwealth of Independent State (CIS), said on Tuesday he hoped that Ukraine would continue its membership in the Commonwealth under its newly elected president.

“I hope very much that Ukraine’s new president and a new government to be formed after the presidential elections will show a sober and pragmatic approach to CIS membership, moreover, I hope Ukraine will take part in integration processes,” he said, adding that this was in the interests of the Ukrainian people.

Lebedev stressed that the CIS had never severed contacts with Ukraine. He said he had maintained relations with both the Ukrainian government’s administration and with its foreign ministry. Apart from that, according to the CIS executive secretary, Ukraine’s representation at the CIS was still functioning in Minsk, under the CIS headquarters. “The head of the mission has been recalled but the mission is working,” he noted.

Lebedev also said he was rather optimistic about “constructive pronouncements made by (Petro) Poroshenko, who, as far as we understand, will be declared president.” He noted that he had had personal contacts with Poroshenko when the latter had been Ukraine’s Economy Minister and Foreign Minister.

According to the results of Ukraine's presidential elections, after 94.12% of ballots were processed, Petro Poroshenko has won 54.46% of votes on Sunday, May 25, the Ukrainian Central Election Commission cited updated data on Tuesday. Former Prime Minister and now the leader of the Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) party, Yulia Tymoshenko, finished second with 12.88% of the vote.

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