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G7 leaders issue joint statement on Ukraine

03 March 2014 08:38 (UTC +04:00)

The leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada, as well as presidents of the European Council and the European Commission have issued a joint statement, APA reports quoting KUNA.

The statement reads:

“We, the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States and the President of the European Council and President of the European Commission, join together today to condemn the Russian Federation’s clear violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, contravention of Russia's obligations under the UN Charter and its 1997 basing agreement with Ukraine. We call on Moscow to address any ongoing security or human rights concerns that it has with Ukraine through direct negotiations, and/or via international observation or mediation under the auspices of the UN or the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which is something we all stand ready to assist with. For this reason, we have decided for the time being to suspend our participation in activities associated with the preparation of the scheduled G8 Summit in Sochi in June. Presenting a united front, the G7 noted they will stand behind Ukraine in its efforts to restore unity, stability, and political and economic health to the country. To that end, we will support Ukraine's work with the International Monetary Fund to negotiate a new program and to implement needed reforms, they added. IMF support will be critical in unlocking additional assistance from the World Bank, other international financial institutions, the EU, and bilateral sources.”