Minister Prystaiko briefed his counterpart on current political situation in Ukraine and outlined the priorities of the new Government. Minister Maas underlined the unprecedented level of trust among Ukrainians in the course of President Zelenskyi and expressed his hope for the prompt implementation of an ambitious agenda of a new political team, especially regarding the  anticorruption measures.

The parties focused on the ways of the conflict resolution in Donbas, including joint efforts for a peace progress within the “Normandy format”. Minister Maas praised the peace initiatives of the President of Ukraine, which open the opportunity window for the peace. He commended successful disengagement at the checkpoint “Stanytsia Luhanska”, which is an important step towards de-escalation. Minister Prystaiko invited his German colleague to visit Ukraine and make a joint trip to this checkpoint.

Minister Maas confirmed that Germany supports maintaining of the sanctions against Russia until real progress is achieved by the implementation of the Minsk process.

The sides stressed the importance of a more active bilateral cooperation, including setting up joint projects in different areas. Important step on this track will be the visit of German State Secretaries to Ukraine in November.

Both Ministers agreed to further contribute to the closer trade ties between Ukraine and Germany. In this respect, Minister Prystaiko invited Germany, one of the leading trade partners and investors in Ukraine, to invest more in Ukraine’s growing economy. He also invited Germany to consider investing in the restoration of the infrastructure of Donbas.