Poroshenko describes his last conversation with Putin
Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko said that he spoke on the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin about the arrest of Roman Sushchenko. The Ukrinform journalist is accused of espionage by the Russian authorities.
“My last phone call with Putin had to do with Ukrainian citizens who are being held in Russian prisons. In particular, we spoke about the release of Roman Sushchenko… As a result of these negotiations, it was arranged for Roman’s family to meet with him in the prison,” Poroshenko said at a press conference on Sunday.
He did not specify when the phone call had taken place.
According to Russian intelligence services, Sushchenko was an intelligence agent, collecting confidential information about the Russian Armed Forces and the National Guard. He is being threatened with up to 20 years of imprisonment. Ukrinform denied the accusations of espionage, noting that the journalist was on holiday and went to Moscow on personal matters.
At the end of April, the newspaper Kommersant reported that the leaders of Russia and Ukraine are maintaining telephone contact. The last call took place at Kyiv’s initiative during the first half of April, and was devoted to the situation in the Donbas.