Putin: The Normandy format will continue
The President of Russia, Vladimir Putin stated that the Normandy format for the peaceful settlement of the conflict in the Donbas will continue its existence. “Regarding the Normandy format, whether it is good or bad, there is no other means of settling conflicts. That is why, of course, Russia will support this format,” Putin stated at a press conference following the G-20 Summit, TASS wrote.
In response to the question of whether it means the resumption of meetings with the President of Ukraine, Putin said that there is no other choice, probably, they will have to meet. “However, I told both the Federal Chancellor and the President of France that the point isn’t to meet or not to meet. These meetings should lead to some positive progress in the resolution of the conflict,” Putin noted.
On the 11th of August, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Russia refuses to participate in negotiations in the Normandy format. All of this has taken place after Russian occupation authorities detained several Ukrainians in the Crimea and accused them of planning sabotage on the order of the Main Directorate of Intelligence of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
However, the President of France, François Hollande, stated on the 5th of September, after he met with Putin, that the meeting of the Normandy Four will take place in the near future.