Kerry urges Russia to pull back forces from Ukraine borders

By: 10 years ago

US Secretary of State John Kerry arrives to speak to the media at the US Ambassador to France’s residence in Paris on Sunday, March 30, 2014, after he met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov about the situation in Ukraine. Kerry urged Russia to pull back its forces from the borders of Ukraine, and said any talks on the country’s future must include Kiev’s leaders. AP

PARIS—US Secretary of State John Kerry on Sunday called on Russia to pull back its forces from the borders of Ukraine, and said any talks on the country’s future must include Kiev’s leaders.

“We will not accept a path forward where the legitimate government of Ukraine is not at the table. This principle is clear. No decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine,” Kerry told reporters.

He was speaking after almost four hours of hastily arranged talks in Paris with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in a bid to ease global tensions after Moscow’s annexation of Ukraine’s southern Crimean peninsula.

He added that “any real progress in Ukraine must include a pullback of the very large Russian force that is currently massing along Ukraine’s borders.”

The top US diplomat said both countries “have differences of opinion about the events that led to this crisis. But both of us recognize the importance of finding a diplomatic solution for the Ukrainian people.”

Kerry said Washington would “consider the ideas and the suggestions that we developed tonight and to continue our discussions soon.”

Washington would work with the new interim leaders in Kiev to ensure the rights of minorities and language rights as well as demobilization and disarmament of the regular forces, Kerry told a press conference.