The discussion focused on the south-east Ukraine. The President of Russia pointed out that Kiev’s attempts to distort the essence of the Minsk agreements were counterproductive and that the selective implementation of its obligations was pushing the negotiation process into a dead-end.
The two leaders expressed a negative opinion of the recent statements made by Ukrainian officials on the need to revise the Minsk Package of Measures. They also reaffirmed that there is no alternative to the Minsk agreements as the only basis for a settlement of the internal Ukrainian conflict. In this context, they mentioned the importance of the full and unconditional implementation of the Package of Measures and the decisions adopted at the Normandy format summits, in particular, in Paris on December 9, 2019. Vladimir Putin and Angela Merkel spoke for encouraging efforts in this area, primarily between the aides to the leaders of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine.
Discussing the situation around Iran, the President of Russia emphasised the uselessness of sanctions pressure on Tehran and the importance of preserving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on Iran’s nuclear programme, which has been approved by UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
Vladimir Putin and Angela Merkel exchanged views on the developments in Libya. They agree that the crisis there must be settled exclusively through political and diplomatic means and through the development of an inter-Libyan dialogue, as stipulated by the decisions of the Berlin Conference held on January 19, 2020 and UN Security Council Resolution 2510, which formalised them.
A number of other current issues on the bilateral agenda, including joint efforts against the spread of the coronavirus infection, were also discussed.