CZECH REPUBLIC: U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urges Russia and Ukraine to find a political solution to the ongoing conflict and engage in "constructive dialogue"

Record ID: 565397

  • Title: CZECH REPUBLIC: U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urges Russia and Ukraine to find a political solution to the ongoing conflict and engage in "constructive dialogue"
  • Date: 4th April 2014
  • Summary: PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC (APRIL 4, 2014) (REUTERS) CZECH GOVERNMENT HEADQUARTERS UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY GENERAL, BAN KI-MOON, SHAKING HANDS WITH CZECH PRIME MINISTER, BOHUSLAV SOBOTKA / BAN AND SOBOTKA WALKING BAN AND SOBOTKA SHAKING HANDS CAMERA CREWS/PHOTOGRAPHER TAKING PICTURES NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY GENERAL, BAN KI- MOON, SAYING: "We discussed and agreed that urgent need should be made to find the political solution through direct and constructive dialogue between the parties concerned." PHOTOGRAPHER TAKING PICTURES (SOUNDBITE) (English) UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY GENERAL, BAN KI- MOON, SAYING: "I had very useful and extensive discussion with President Putin of Russian Federation and I explained my own and United Nations and also international community's strong concern and very serious concern about what had happened in Crimean Peninsula. And there should be protection and respect for United Nations charter provisions, namely sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity should be protected and respected. And I strongly urged both parties to engage in direct and constructive dialogue. At the same time, I wished my strong, I urged my strong wish that the tension should be de-escalated." JOURNALISTS LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (Czech) CZECH PRIME MINISTER, BOHUSLAV SOBOTKA, SAYING: "We are unambiguously supporting the de-escalation of this conflict. We believe that Russia should lower its military presence at the border with Ukraine and we also welcome the mediating role which the United Nations plays in this conflict." CAMERA MAN FILMING SOBOTKA SHAKING HANDS WITH BAN AND BOTH LEAVING
  • Embargoed: 19th April 2014 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Czech Republic
  • Country: Czech Republic
  • Topics: Conflict,Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA5HT9MBTG307VOV3QXJVX9IFAY
  • Story Text: United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said on Friday (April 4) that both sides of the Russia-Ukraine conflict should find as political solution and engage in constructive dialogue.
    "We discussed and agreed that urgent need should be made to find the political solution through direct and constructive dialogue between the parties concerned," said Ban in Prague, where he met with the Czech Prime Minister Bohuslaw Sobotka.
    Ban said that he had spoken with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the phone and outlined his concern over the annexation of Crimea.
    "I had very useful and extensive discussion with President Putin of Russian Federation and I explained my own and United Nations and also international community's strong concern and very serious concern about what had happened in Crimean Peninsula," he said.
    "There should be protection and respect for United Nations charter provisions, namely sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity should be protected and respected. And I strongly urged both parties to engage in direct and constructive dialogue. At the same time... I urged my strong wish that the tension should be de-escalated."
    Sobotka said the Czech Republic supports the United Nations in its efforts to bring calm to the region.
    "We are unambiguously supporting the de-escalation of this conflict. We believe that Russia should lower its military presence at the border with Ukraine and we also welcome the mediating role which the United Nations plays in this conflict," Sobotka said.
    Kiev's current, pro-European leaders and the West condemned Russia's annexation of Crimea as illegal under international law, and the United States and EU have imposed limited sanctions on Moscow.
    The United Nations declared on Wednesday (April 2) it will continue to view Crimea as part of Ukraine in line with a General Assembly resolution adopted last week.
    Earlier, the 193-nation assembly declared invalid the Moscow-backed referendum across Crimea that led to the Black Sea peninsula's secession from Ukraine and annexation to Russia.
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