On the instructions of the Head of State, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andriy Yermak held a meeting with ambassadors and representatives of diplomatic missions accredited in our country.
The meeting, which took place on the Day of Ukrainian Statehood in the premises of the Verkhovna Rada, was dedicated to the implementation of the Peace Formula of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in particular the clause regarding respect for the UN Charter, the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity and the world order.
Representatives of the embassies of the G7 states, ambassadors and representatives of diplomatic missions of the European Union, the Czech Republic, Poland, the Republic of South Africa, Estonia, Türkiye, Lithuania, Egypt, Brazil, the Republic of Korea, India, Romania, Finland, Norway, Denmark, Spain, Latvia, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Slovakia, Sweden, the United Arab Emirates, the Apostolic Nunciature, as well as the Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the UN resident coordinator in Ukraine took part in the event. Representatives of diplomatic institutions of Germany, Chile, Australia, Kuwait, Argentina, Cook Islands, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia joined the meeting via a video link.
Yermak expressed gratitude for the meeting and welcomed the representatives of the diplomatic missions of those countries that took part in it for the first time.
"I think we all share the same approach in the matters of respect for international law and the UN Charter. So I would like to express my sincere thanks to you for the fact that we are meeting in this format for the fourth time and will continue. I hope that your active participation is evidence that you share our principles," the head of the Office of the President said.
He said that proposals to the philosophy of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Peace Formula expressed by diplomats will help in its implementation.
Yermak said that in the process of implementing the Formula, a structure of three levels for its coordination and implementation was created: the first – ambassadors of countries, the second – national security advisors, and the third and highest – leaders of states. Such a structure makes it possible to work effectively on the provisions of the Peace Formula and ways of its implementation.
"We believe the Ukrainian peace plan should be taken as a basis. The logic is very simple: the war, unfortunately, is taking place on our territory. For us, for Ukrainians, and, I am sure, for everyone who is here today, all our colleagues, partners, and friends, the most important thing is to end this war. And end it so that Ukraine can return all its territories, restore its territorial integrity, its sovereignty," he said.
The head of the President's Office said that the Ukrainian peace plan is built exclusively on the principles of international law, the UN Charter, and justice.
"For us, the opinion of everyone who respects our sovereignty, territorial integrity, and independence is important. We are ready to hear everyone, ready to talk with everyone. I hope that, with your help, we will be able to develop as clear and concise wording as possible, allowing for the possibility of different interpretations of the points of the Formula. No matter what the correction is, the fundamental principle of the Formula – full compliance with the norms of international law – will remain inviolable," Yermak added.
The head of the President's Office recalled that in the walls of the Verkhovna Rada, where this meeting is held, in 1991, the restoration of Ukrainian statehood was proclaimed. He said that at that time the vast majority of the population of the Ukrainian SSR voted for a free, democratic and unified state, and the world community unconditionally accepted this choice.
"And now we demand respect for this choice. Ukraine considers full restoration of sovereignty and returning to the borders of 1991 as one of the fundamental conditions for the end of the war. The inviolability of borders and the right of nations to self-determination are the basic principles on which the entire system of international relations rests," he said.
Yermak said that the issue of Ukraine's territorial integrity is of great importance for the restoration of the world order, which is based on the power of law, not on the power of force.
Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk welcomed representatives of diplomatic missions in the parliament. According to him, it is extremely significant that on the Day of Ukrainian Statehood, the Verkhovna Rada became a platform for discussions of the point of the Ukrainian Peace Formula regarding respect for the UN Charter and the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity with representatives of the diplomatic corps.
"The restoration of world order and general respect for the UN Charter is possible only by restoring the territorial integrity of the Ukrainian state within its internationally recognized borders," Stefanchuk said.
The Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada said that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Ukrainian Peace Formula opens a universal path to peace through the restoration and further observance of the fundamental principles of international cooperation.
"President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's formula is a formula of justice. Because justice is the cornerstone of international law. And this is the formula for how to live side by side, how to respect each other, how to interact and not kill. President Zelenskyy's Peace Formula is Ukrainian statehood. This is the statehood of each of your countries," Stefanchuk added.