President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes that the issue of ending the war in Donbas and returning the temporarily occupied territories depends not on the reform of local self-government in Ukraine, but on the position of the Russian Federation and support for our state by international partners, including Normandy format participants.
"The issue of Donbas is not a local issue. I believe that this is a matter for the central government and all Ukrainians. And it doesn't really depend on decentralization. We understand that the issues of returning Donbas, silence and reducing the number of shots, saving people, exchange - all these issues, regardless of how they are spelled out in the Minsk agreements, today depend on the desire of the Russian Federation. And on pressure, help, support of our European partners - members of the Normandy Four,” said the President during an interview within the All-Ukrainian Forum "Ukraine 30. Decentralization", which takes place in Kyiv.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine is doing everything necessary to establish peace in Donbas, and reaffirmed willingness to negotiate at the level of leaders of the Normandy format countries.
"I think this meeting will take place. But today everything depends on Russia. And they shouldn’t pass on that ball. We all understand that everything depends on them today. For our part, we believe that we are moving forward on this issue as quickly as possible," the President said.