In the past 24 hours, President of OSCE PA and the Parliament of Montenegro Mr Ranko Krivokapić visited Moscow and Kiev, two of the most important addresses for resolving the burning foreign policy issue of the day – the Ukrainian crisis. In a diplomatic mission, aimed at bringing closer the positions of the two countries, Mr Krivokapić spoke with head officials of the Russian Federation and Ukraine. In addition to multiple other initiatives awaiting completion, the consent of Russian and Ukrainian parties has been provided to have a first meeting of parliamentary delegations in Vienna on 11 April. 

In separate meetings, Mr Krivokapić spoke with Speakers of both Houses of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation in Moscow. Ms Valentina Matviyenko, Chair of Russia's Federation Council, informed Mr Krivokapić on the positions of the Russian Federation regarding the events in Crimea, as well as on its views regarding introduced sanctions and treatment of Russian Federation by the international organisations. Mr Krivokapić pointed out that by meeting in good faith it was possible to reach an agreement through dialogue and unity.    

At his meeting with Sergey Naryshkin, Chair of the Russian State Duma, the interlocutors exchanged opinions on the current situation in Ukraine from the multilateral but also bilateral positions, concluding that the Russian Federation was an indispensable element of stabilisation. Mr Krivokapić pointed out that, in the international context, the OSCE had shown the most capacity so far to help with the Ukrainian crisis.

In Kiev, Mr Krivokapić spoke with the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, who is also the acting President of Ukraine, Mr Oleksandr Turchynov. During their conversation, Mr Krivokapić pointed out that the parliaments had the strength to make the first step towards thawing the relationship and understanding in order to reach a permanent agreement.   

Wanting to contribute to trust within Ukraine, President Krivokapić also met with the Ukrainian-Kiev Patriarch Filaret.

You can download video footage from this address: LINK