Poroshenko confirms he planned meetings with leaders of 'skeptical' EU countries
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Former Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko, who now leads the European Solidarity political party, was going to meet with leaders of EU countries wary of supporting Ukraine to try and persuade them to change their position, Poroshenko said at a press briefing on Dec. 4.
The former president stated that the meetings, including with leaders from Hungary and Slovakia, who are skeptical about Ukraine's EU membership, were supposed to take place in November. However, Poroshenko was denied permission to leave Ukraine.
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He described this decision as "senseless, unfounded," and one that "discredits not only the [political] opposition but also democracy in Ukraine," according to Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
Regarding the situation at the border on Dec. 1, Poroshenko said he intended to leave Ukraine to meet with politicians in Poland and the United States. All the details of the visits had been agreed with Ukraine's Foreign Ministry, the MP added.
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The border guards explained that they refused Poroshenko's departure because his official trip was canceled by the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's parliament.
The first deputy speaker of the Rada, Oleksandr Kornienko, stated that he canceled Poroshenko's international trip after receiving a confidential letter from an unspecified state institution.
Read also: Former president Poroshenko claims border guards did not let him leave Ukraine
On Dec. 2, Ukraine’s SBU security service reported that Russia planned to use Poroshenko's meeting with Hungarian PM Viktor Orban in a propaganda campaign against Ukraine.
The European Solidarity party stated that the SBU's explanation "causes outright surprise" and that Poroshenko had only planned visits to Poland and the United States.
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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine
