On July 29^th, while on a working trip to Washington, DC, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin had a number of meetings at the US Congress, in particular with the Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs Rep. Ed Royce and with the Ranking Member of this Committee Rep. Eliot Engel, also with the Chairman of the US Senate Committee on Armed Services Sen. Carl Levin. Minister Klimkin also met with the leadership and members of the US Senate Subcommittee on the European Affairs - Sen. Christopher Murphy, Sen. Ron Johnson, Sen. Benjamin Cardin, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen and Sen. James Risch.

During the meetings, the Foreign Minister briefed the Senators and Representatives on the ongoing counter-terrorist operation in eastern Ukraine, on the efforts made by the Ukrainian government to ensure the stability and territorial integrity of our country, as well as on the difficult economic situation in Ukraine, which is largely linked to the Russian aggression and economic pressure from our eastern neighbor. Pavlo Klimkin welcomed the additional sanctions, imposed by the US and the EU against Russia and expressed his hope for unity of our Western partners on this issue.

The Foreign Minister stressed that the Government of Ukraine will need practical help from the United States in its efforts to conduct large-scale reforms.

US lawmakers have expressed support for our country and condemned Russia's aggression; they stressed the readiness of the US to provide assistance to Ukraine and step up pressure on Russia. They also welcomed the reforms of the Ukrainian Government and expressed their full support.