Russian and Ukrainian Presidents Dmitry Medvedev and Viktor Yanukovych have stressed the need to resume the implementation of inter-regional environmental programs, including programs on the protection and use of the waters of the Siversky Donets river basin.
"Ecology is an important topic, including a program for the protection and use of water in the Siversky Donets river basin. We should think how this work can be structured and brought to a modern level corresponding to the new nature of our cooperation," Medvedev said a meeting with the heads of Ukrainian and Russian border regions in Kharkiv on Wednesday.
He said that the most important issue in relations between the two countries was to prevent any delays.
"There should be attention from the central authorities. This is what I will proceed from," Medvedev said.
Yanukovych also stressed the importance of the Siversky Donets environmental program, as the river originates in Russia’s Belgorod region, traverses Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv regions in Ukraine, and then flows into the Don River in Russia’s Rostov region.
The goal of the program is to normalize the condition of water ecosystems in the river basin and create the conditions for the uninterrupted supply of water to the population and located in coastal regions in Russia and Ukraine.
"We have felt the problems linked to the environment of these regions more sharply, [with the] lack of high-quality drinking water and the pollution of these areas. So, in a literal sense, we currently need to revive these projects," Yanukovych said.
The two presidents, along with the heads of Ukrainian and Russian border regions, discussed the issue of stepping up cooperation in the sphere of education, as well as the state of preparations for marking the 65th anniversary of the victory in the Great Patriotic War (the Second World War).
"Surveys in Russia and Ukraine showed that most residents of Russia and Ukraine were committed to the intensive development of trade and economic cooperation, and humanitarian relations. This will benefit our countries," Yanukovych said.
He expressed hope that Medvedev’s forthcoming visit to Ukraine in May this year would be very fruitful.
