Chairman of the State Duma's International Affairs Committee Alexei Pushkov said after talks with French counterparts that France wants Russia to recognize the current Ukrainian leadership.
“I have the impression that France very much wants Russia to
recognize the current Ukrainian leadership de facto,” Pushkov told
reporters in Paris.
This is unacceptable, he said.
Pushkov said that he had met with the head of the international
affairs committee in the French parliament, and with other French
parliamentary deputies. “The French lawmakers argued that the current
interim government will go and does not claim to work on a permanent
basis,” he said.
This argument is extremely doubtful, Pushkov said, adding that “the current Ukrainian government will stay forever.”
The discussion also dealt with the influence which Russia is
supposedly exerting on the political developments in Ukraine, he said.
French lawmakers claimed, for instance, that the situation in Ukraine
would return to normal if Russia does not intervene, he said.
Pushkov said that rallies in Kherson, Luhansk, Donetsk and other mentioned Ukrainian cities cannot be organized by Russia since it is imposible to organize protests in a foreign country for several months.
The French partners, however, remain unconvinced, thinking that
“everything is alright about Ukraine, and that it’s Russia that is the
trouble maker,” he said.
“We cannot accept this,” Pushkov said.
Russia understands people defending their rights in southeastern Ukraine, but it doesn’t intervene politically,” Pushkov said.
What is happening in Ukraine today is the country’s domestic crisis,” he said.
