You're reading: Poroshenko claims ‘Crimean issue’ needs to be solved

One of the priority tasks of the newly elected Ukrainian president will be to resolve the "Crimean issue", said Petro Poroshenko, who according to the preliminary data is leading in the presidential election.

“One of the first priorities of the president, of the entire
Ukrainian government, will be to resolve the ‘Crimean issue:’ the return
of Crimea to Ukraine, the protection of the Ukrainians living in Crimea
who are currently experiencing an extremely high pressure because of
their ‘Ukrainian-ness’,” he said at a briefing in Kyiv on Monday.

European integration will be the priority of Ukraine’s foreign policy, Poroshenko said.

“The priority of the new authorities will be European integration: it
gained huge support among voters who took part in the presidential
elections,” he said.

Poroshenko also announced his intention to hold high-level meetings
prior to his inauguration, “which will facilitate the preparation of the
agenda for the first few weeks of (his) activity as the president.”

This activity will be intense, the candidate said.

“We have decisive and ambitious plans to modernize our country. Our
priorities include the fight against corruption, an independent
judiciary branch of power,” Poroshenko stressed.