Ban and Russian Foreign Minister discuss need to de-escalate situation in Ukraine

3 March 2014 – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov discussed the ongoing crisis in Ukraine during a meeting in Geneva today, while deputy United Nations chief Jan Eliasson arrived in Kiev to meet with authorities there.
Mr. Ban and Mr. Lavrov discussed the importance of de-escalating the situation by engaging in constructive and meaningful dialogue, according to a readout provided by the Secretary-General’s spokesperson.
The meeting, which took place on the margins of the opening session of the UN Human Rights Council, comes amid growing tensions in Ukraine’s Crimea region, where additional Russian troops and armoured vehicles have reportedly been deployed.


It also follows an urgent meeting of the Security Council on Saturday during which Ukraine’s Ambassador to the UN called on the 15-member body to do everything possible to prevent military intervention by Russia. Yuriy Sergeyev stressed that recent events posed a serious threat to his country’s integrity and to peace and stability in the region.
It was following that meeting that Mr. Ban dispatched Deputy Secretary-General Eliasson to Kiev to get an understanding of the situation on the ground and meet with Ukrainian authorities.
“I have repeatedly emphasized that it is critical to ensure full respect for – and the preservation of – Ukraine’s independence, unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity. It is now of utmost importance to restore calm, to de-escalate tensions immediately through a dialogue,” Mr. Ban told a news conference in Geneva.

• The Secretary-General recalled that, in a telephone call with President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, he had urged the Russian leader to address the situation by “engaging constructively” with Ukraine’s authorities.

• It is important, he added, that both sides should “lower the temperature,” refrain from rhetoric and engage in dialogue. 

http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=47259&Cr=Ukraine&Cr1=#.UxTnTM5qlqA
3/3/14
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• О встрече Министра иностранных дел России С.В.Лаврова с Генеральным секретарем ООН Пан Ги Муном

3 марта в Женеве состоялась встреча Министра иностранных дел Российской Федерации С.В.Лаврова с Генеральным секретарем ООН Пан Ги Муном.
В ходе беседы основное внимание было уделено обстановке на Украине. Министр отметил необходимость возвращения ситуации в этой стране в правовое поле и выполнения соглашения между правительством и оппозицией от 21 февраля с.г., включая проведение конституционной реформы, призванной обеспечить законные интересы всех регионов страны, и утверждение ее результатов на всеукраинском референдуме.
Была обсуждена также проблематика сирийского урегулирования. Стороны были едины в том, что путь к преодолению острого кризиса в Сирии лежит в плоскости всеобъемлющего политического урегулирования через обеспечение устойчивого процесса межсирийских переговоров на основе Женевского коммюнике от 30 июня 2012 года. При этом решения по фундаментальным вопросам будущего страны должны принимать сами сирийцы на основе взаимного согласия.
http://www.mid.ru/brp_4.nsf/newsline/FD176FFB844AC1CD44257C9000597301
3/3/14