MOSCOW, April 17 (RIA Novosti) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is heading to Geneva to participate in the four-party talks on the Ukrainian crisis, a source in the Russian delegation said Thursday.
“Lavrov is departing for Geneva to take part in the negotiations on Ukraine,” the source said adding that the Russian foreign minister is also expected to hold a number of bilateral meetings with his counterparts.
The talks, to be attended by EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, US Secretary of State John Kerry and Ukraine’s acting Foreign Minister Andrii Deshchytsia, are part of the diplomatic effort to resolve the ongoing crisis in eastern Ukraine, where pro-federalization protests have recently intensified.
Ukraine’s acting President Oleksander announced Tuesday the start of a military operation, involving armed forces, against pro-federalization protesters. Russia strongly condemned the move, calling it an extremely dangerous development.
Lavrov earlier rejected allegations levied by Kiev that Russia could cancel the meeting. He also called groundless the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry’s claims that the domestic political situation in Ukraine will not be discussed at the meeting, adding that de-escalation, disarmament of illegal groups, constitutional reform and upcoming elections due on May 25 will all be on the agenda.
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