OSCE PA President Ilkka Kanerva (left) and Verkhovna Rada Chairperson Volodymyr Groysman speak to the media following their meeting in Kyiv, 6 February.
COPENHAGEN, 6 February 2015 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) met today with Verkhovna Rada Chairperson Volodymyr Groysman, Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin and other senior parliamentary and government officials in Kyiv for discussions that focused on the status of efforts to resolve the crisis in and around Ukraine.

The recent escalation of fighting in the east of the country, border security, international support for Ukraine and the humanitarian situation on the ground were among the issues considered.

"The window is closing for a diplomatic solution to this crisis and the international community must not let it slam shut. In my meetings with Chairperson Groysman and Foreign Minister Klimkin I reaffirmed that the OSCE and the Parliamentary Assembly see no alternative to diplomacy -- but success requires finding a way to convince Russia to distance itself from the separatists' illegal activities and mend its broken OSCE commitments. What remains non-negotiable is Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and legitimate right to defend itself," Kanerva said.

President Kanerva also met with the Chairperson of the Verkhovna Rada's Committee on National Security and Defense, Serhiy Pashinskiy, as well as with the members of the newly appointed Ukrainian Delegation to the OSCE PA. He also observed a plenary session of the Verkhovna Rada.

"I encouraged Chairperson Groysman and Ukrainian parliamentarians to rely on the opportunity afforded by the OSCE PA for dialogue with their Russian counterparts, including the participation of other parliamentarians, which I believe can still promote positive developments. I look forward to their participation in the Assembly's Winter Meeting this month," Kanerva said.

Meetings with parliamentary leaders also included discussion of the new Verkhovna Rada's legislative priorities and continuing reform efforts.

OSCE PA Secretary General Spencer Oliver and Ismo Soukola, the Deputy Head of the Finnish Delegation to the OSCE PA, also participated in the meetings in Kyiv.

The OSCE's response to the crisis in and around Ukraine will be the topic of a special debate at the PA's Winter Meeting, held on 18-20 February in Vienna.

For more on the OSCE PA's work on Ukraine, click here.