Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has left on a working visit to the U.S., his press secretary Svyatoslav Tsegolko said.
“The president of Ukraine has left for a working visit to the United States,” Tsegolko wrote on his Facebook on June 19.
As reported, on June 14, a source in diplomatic circles has told Interfax-Ukraine Poroshenko will pay a visit to Washington next week, where he will hold a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. “Indeed, an agreement was achieved on the meeting [with Trump], the visit will be held on June 19-20,” the source said.
The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine later confirmed a meeting of the presidents of Ukraine and the United States, but did not give any specific dates.
“The meeting will definitely take place, we are preparing it. But we should keep you on the edge of your seats. Svyatoslav Tsegolko will make a statement soon (simultaneously with our American friends), but we are now working on a large part of the speech,” Klimkin said.
The minister also said the agenda of the meeting will include issues related to Russia’s meeting its commitments under the Minsk agreements, as well as the occupied Crimea, access to the peninsula by international observers, bilateral cooperation between Ukraine and the United States and assistance to reforms in Ukraine.
The minister also said they will discuss security cooperation between Ukraine and the United States, and “important political decisions in this area” will be taken.
The minister also specified that the parties in preparation for the Poroshenko-Trump meeting were agreeing the format for the U.S. participation in negotiations on the settlement of the Donbas conflict.
“Before the meeting it was important for us to agree with our American partners about the format of their engagement, whether this will be a parallel format or a format of interaction at certain levels with the Normandy format. A lot of important news will appear soon,” Klimkin said.
In his words, Kyiv and Washington will continue to search for ways to pressure Russia.
