Laurent Fabius, the Foreign Minister of France:
- “EU is not ready to provide EU membership to Ukraine”.
- “Nobody wants Ukraine in NATO”
- “Should Vladimir Putin return to the G8?”
Source: itele.fr – i-Télé. – June 7, 2014
Laurent Fabius, the Foreign Minister of France, granted an exclusive interview to i-Télé on his way back from the inauguration of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Saturday, June 7th, 2014.
According to Fabius, there is no agreement in Europe with Poroshenko’s thesis that the signing of an association agreement should be the first step towards full membership of Ukraine in the EU.
Speaking on the French channel i-Télé on Saturday, June 7, Fabius said that during his inauguration, the new president of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko “made a very pro-European speech,” although the European Union is not yet ready to take in Ukraine. In his view, EU countries do not share Poroshenko’s thesis that an association agreement with the EU will be the first step towards full membership,
Geographically, Ukraine is in Europe, but the country “must maintain good relations with both the EU and with Russia,” he stressed. At the same time, Fabius expressed the hope that the inauguration of Poroshenko and his brief meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Normandy can be the beginning of a de-escalation in Ukraine, AFP reported, June 8.
“Nobody wants Ukraine in NATO”
In his exclusive interview with i-Télé, Laurent Fabius spoke of Barak Obama’s opposition to the sale of the French Mistral frigates to Russia. The Minister confirmed that as an “independent nation,” France will certainly deliver the ships to Russia, as expected. He also responded to Putin’s concerns about NATO, asserting that “nobody wants Ukraine to enter NATO — not the United States, not Europe, and not even Ukraine. “Moreover, contrary to the US position, Laurent Fabius believes that there is no question regarding the recognition of Poroshenko. “It is obvious that Vladimir Putin has already recognized the Ukrainian president,” he said.
Would you like to see Ukraine in the EU?
No, Fabius replied. “Poroshenko says that the association agreement marks the first step towards EU membership, but when I talk about it with my European partners, there is no majority in favor today. It’s very clear.”
Should Vladimir Putin return to the G8?
The head of French diplomacy believes it is too early to reinstate Russia in the G8, from which it has been expelled. According to Fabius, it was “beneficial that the G8 became the G7. He thinks that “President Putin is trying to move forward, and we must erect barriers if we don’t want him to advance on territories we consider unacceptable.” However, Fabius qualified his statement by adding that one should not “declare war on Russia.” “Diplomacy must make its way between these two boundaries,” he concluded.
Compiled by: Dr. Vitalii Usenko, MD, MBA, expert of the Center of Military-Political Studies in the sphere of psychology of communications, and by Dmytro Usenko, student at Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
Editing: Edmond Huet, Euromaidan Press armament and military questions specialist, consultant to French TV and radio
Sources:
Fabius /Ukraine : “le début d’une désescalade possible”
МИД Франции: ЕС еще неготов принять Украину всвой состав
