You're reading: Kremlin envoy urges Ukraine to give official status to Russian language

Yalta, June 7 (Interfax) - The Russian president's special representative for international cultural cooperation has urged Ukraine to give official status to the Russian language alongside Ukrainian.

A great deal of problems have built up in Russian-Ukrainian relations over recent years, and, "as regards to cultural ties, a very important program should of course be produced to return official status to the Russian language," Mikhail Shvydkoi told an international roundtable in Yalta.

The roundtable, entitled "Ukraine and Russia: New Interaction," was part of a current Russian cultural festival in the Ukrainian city entitled "The Great Russian Word."

Shvydkoi also pointed out that national self-awareness processes in eastern and southeastern Ukraine are not the same as those in the country’s western regions.

"This is giving rise to a very serious problem of forming the Ukrainian nation," he said. "And, being in earnest about what Russia needs today – Russia needs a powerful, prosperous, democratic and stable Ukraine, with bilingualism as its wealth."

"The power of Ukraine is its bilingual culture. Biculturalism is a very important basis for a powerful Ukrainian state," Shvydkoi said.

The Great Russian Word festival opened on June 6 and ends on June 12.