Poroshenko on BBC: Putin cannot be trusted, he needs not part of territories, but all of Ukraine
MP of Ukraine, leader of the European Solidarity party Petro Poroshenko stated the inadmissibility of achieving peace by forcing Ukraine to give up its own territories, especially without the participation of Ukraine and European countries in general.
"First of all, we are a nation that does not trade its territory. But I want to convey to you the information that Putin does not need Ukrainian territory. Putin does not need part of Ukraine. Putin will not have geostrategic success without placing a pro-Kremlin government here, in Kyiv. This is its essence. In this situation, we cannot accept that peace should be settled at the expense of Ukraine. We believe that this would be an absolutely dangerous precedent," Poroshenko said on BBC television.
He also said the Minsk agreements, which he discussed and signed during his presidency with Vladimir Putin, "were not Putin's claim to Ukrainian territory, to Ukrainian sovereignty, to Ukrainian independence."
"And another principle that is vitally important during this meeting is nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine, nothing about Europe without Europe. I am absolutely sure that even the very fact of Putin's meeting with Trump, if it does not bring any results, will be a great success for Putin, because Putin will break the international isolation that exists, and that is why we need this meeting with absolutely practical results of this agreement. I think that this result can be an unconditional, not only in the air or at sea, ceasefire," Poroshenko believes.
According to the politician, "only the Ukrainian Armed Forces are the best diplomat who can stop Putin."
"The demonstration of Ukraine's transatlantic integration into NATO is that Putin cannot blackmail the entire Free World. And with the help of effective sanctions, we can stop Putin's ability to finance war with the most modern weapons. My message is this: please do not trust Putin," Poroshenko said.
As reported, U.S. President Donald Trump stated during a conversation with journalists that peace between Russia and Ukraine is possible on the basis of the exchange and return of part of the territories, emphasizing that this is a complex and long-term process.
