Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine A.Parubiy: "Inter-parliamentary diplomacy creates the basis for inter-governmental cooperation”

The Chair of the Parliament met on Friday with Jean-Yves Le Drian, the French Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs.

The participants of the meeting discussed the issue of intensifying bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and France at the level of parliaments and friendship groups, carrying out reforms in Ukraine, coordinating actions against construction of the North Stream 2 gas pipeline and supporting the struggle of Ukrainians for restoring territorial integrity and peace throughout the country.

A. Parubiy noted that "Ukraine highly appreciates the support and position of France regarding the territorial integrity of our state, the condemnation of the Russian aggression and preservation of the sanctions". "Keeping the sanctions is the most effective action against the aggressor country - the Russian Federation," he said.

He then stressed that the threat from Russia was a threat not only to Ukraine but also to the whole free world.  "This is a global threat," he said, having added that "Forceful violation of borders may have tragic consequences for other countries if it is accepted by the world".

As a very important, A.Parubiy called the position of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of France on inadmissibility of elections in the occupied Crimea and Sevastopol, the territories of Ukraine.

A.Parubiy stressed that he was trying to convey the position of the country on the Nord Stream 2 project to the partners of Ukraine - a joint letter had been sent to the European parliaments to condemn the process.  This appeal was supported by the partners from Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and Moldova. The support from the French side is very momentous on the issue since, according to the Chair, a French company participates in the development of the project.

In turn, the French Minister stressed that France remained resolute and open to cooperation with Ukraine. France is in favor of maintaining the sanctions, until Russia will not make goodwill gestures aimed at establishing peace in the Donbas. The same is to be said about the so called elections in the Crimea.

Jean-Yves Le Drian expressed readiness to build a special format for cooperation.

In this context, the Minister reported on the already inked declaration with the Government of Ukraine to purchase fifty-five helicopters. "France is ready and open to industrial and economic cooperation, as well as to cooperation in educational sphere," he said, and then proposed to declare this year the year of the French language.

The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada informed the French delegates about the state of play in the Ukrainian Parliament, the progress in the reforms and the problems and challenges the Ukrainian people was facing under the Russian aggression.

A.Parubiy noted that "inter-parliamentary diplomacy creates the basis for interstate cooperation", and called for more French parliamentarians to visit Ukraine to see what was happening in Ukraine with their own eyes. He also invited the President of France Emmanuel Macron to pay an official visit to Ukraine in order to widen the dialogue between the Parliaments of the countries.

Hanna Hopko, head of the Committee on Foreign Affairs was also in attendance at the meeting.

Worthy of note

Jean-Yves Le Drian is a French politician of the Socialist Party serving as Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs  since 2017. Previously he was the Minister of Defence and Veterans Affairs from 2012 to 2017, under President Francois Hollande.  He was nominated by Emmanuel Macron to serve as Foreign Minister in the Philippe Government on 17 May 2017.

First of all interested by Breton Democratic Union (UDB) in the 1970s, he joined the French Socialist Party (PS) in May 1974. He served as the deputy mayor of Lorient in 1977 and then, at the age of 30, he became a member of the French National Assembly for Morbihan. He served until 1993 and then again from 1997 until June 2007.

He served as Minister of the Sea in the government of Prime Minister Edith Cresson from 1991 to 1992.

In 2004 at the top of the list Bretagne a gauche, Bretagne pour tous (PS-PCF-PRG-Les Verts-UDB), he won 58.66% in the runoff and a total of 58 seats in the regional council. He thus became regional president of Brittany. In October 2010 he became President of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions of Europe (CPMR).

He was nominated to serve as the Minister of Defence under Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault on 16 May 2012. As Minister of Defence, he managed the withdrawal of French troops from Afghanistan and the deployment of French troops in the Northern Mali conflict and Operation Barkhane. He is also credited with leading a resurgence in French weapons' exports that have resulted in billions of euros in deals, including the first exports of the Dassault Rafale fighter jet.

On 23 March 2017, Le Drian endorsed Emmanuel Macron's candidacy for President.

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