Vladimir Putin communicated to Victor Yushchenko, his Ukrainian counterpart, that “derusification was occurring in all directions of Russian-Ukrainian relations” during the meeting of the two presidents on February 12, Regnum reported the same day, using information from the press service of the Russian president. Putin said that regardless of the internal political processes of Ukraine, trade between the two countries continued to increase and added that nothing would disturb that trend.  The president remarked, however, that “important questions regarding relations between the two countries demanded special attention,” including cooperation in aviation and space, among others. He added that the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of the two nations remained in contact and continued to discuss important issues at the expert level.

Yushchenko, in turn, noted that since the last meeting of the two presidents a reasonable plan of action had been developed for bilateral relations, yet some sensitive questions remain. He expressed that Ukraine is prepared for dialogue on important issues, stressing that Russia “will always be a strategic partner to Ukraine and that all relations with Russia will be conducted with that in mind,” reported Regnum.

This information was originally published on February 12, 2008 (www.regnum.ru) .