Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin, during his visit to Georgia and Ukraine next week, will urge these countries to carry out the transformations necessary to qualify for NATO membership, the Pentagon has said.
“Austin will stress in both Georgia and Ukraine that there is an open door to NATO and encourage the nations to make the changes necessary for them to qualify for membership in the defensive alliance,” the U.S. Department of Defense has reported.
As reported, Austin will visit Romania and Belgium after Ukraine and Georgia. In Brussels, the head of the Pentagon will hold a meeting with the defense ministers of the NATO countries. According to the Pentagon, this meeting is expected to discuss Russia, as well as problems from China.
Earlier, the Pentagon said Austin was going on a trip to Europe that weekend. In Georgia, he will meet with Prime Minister of this country Irakli Garibashvili and Defense Minister Juansher Burchuladze, and in Ukraine with President Volodymyr Zelensky and Defense Minister Andriy Taran.
In Romania he will meet with President Klaus Iohannis and Defense Minister Nicolae-Ionel Ciuca.
The tenth meeting of the high-level strategic council between Ukraine and Turkey will be held in early 2022, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has said.
“The main topic of our today’s talks is the preparation of the tenth meeting of the high-level strategic council, chaired by Presidents Zelensky and Erdogan. The meeting of this strategic council will take place early next year,” Kuleba said at a joint press conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu in Lviv on Thursday.
The Minister pointed out that the strategic partnership between Ukraine and Turkey is currently at the highest point of development over the past 30 years.
Kuleba pointed out that the ministers agreed on specific steps that will speed up consultations between the ministries of economies of Ukraine and Turkey on signing a free trade agreement.
“Mevlüt and I are convinced that we and our colleagues from our governments must make every effort to fulfill as soon as possible the instructions of the two presidents and sign a free trade agreement. And today we have agreed on specific steps that will speed up consultations between the ministries of our countries’ economies,” he said.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu is paying a working visit to Ukraine (Lviv) on October 7-8.
On the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the murders in Babyn Yar, Israeli President Isaac Herzog will make his first official visit to Ukraine, according to the Israeli Embassy in Ukraine.”During his official visit to Ukraine, President Herzog will speak at events dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Babyn Yar massacre, meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky and Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, address the Verkhovna Rada and meet with representatives of the Ukrainian Jewish community. The visit is expected on October 5 to 7, 2021,” the embassy said in the statement, which was provided to Interfax-Ukraine on Wednesday.
The Duke will arrive in Ukraine on Tuesday, October 5, 2021, on the first official visit of his presidency, at the invitation of President Volodymyr Zelensky.
During the visit, President Herzog will take part in the official international ceremony dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the murders at Babyn Yar, the opening of Kyiv Holocaust Memorial Center in Babyn Yar. Zeev Elkin, a government representative in Ukraine, and other members of the Knesset will also join the presidential delegation, the embassy said.
“There is a need to keep talking about this terrible event and learning its lessons. The Holocaust Memorial Center at Babyn Yar is an important place to celebrate this painful memory and to make a statement that we must continue to make together: never again. The only way to build a present and a future in which crimes against humanity will not find support – it is to study the past, including the Holocaust and the persecution of the Jewish people, in the spirit of the commandment “and you will tell your son and daughter.” I welcome the invitation of President Zelensky and his dedication to the war against anti-Semitism,” the embassy said.
On the morning of Tuesday, October 5, President Herzog will fly to Ukraine, where he will start his visit by laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Kyiv, and then go to an official reception at the Mariinsky Palace, which will start with a guard of honor.
Later, President Herzog will meet with President Zelensky. The meeting will be followed by a joint press statement. In the evening, President Zelensky will receive President Herzog at an official dinner.
On Wednesday morning, President Herzog will address the Verkhovna Rada. On the same day, President Herzog will take part in an event with the local Jewish community and will meet with President of the Federal Republic of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who will also attend the Babyn Yar memorial ceremony.
On Wednesday afternoon, President Herzog will deliver a speech at the official ceremony to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the Babyn Yar murders at the Babyn Yar Holocaust Memorial Center in Kyiv, the embassy said.
During the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the presidents of Ukraine, Poland, Moldova and the Prime Minister of Georgia will meet, according to the official website of the President of Poland.
According to the published schedule, President of Poland Andrzej Duda and his wife will visit the United States on September 21-24, 2021.
On the first day of the visit, September 21 at 20:00, Duda is scheduled to meet with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky, President of the Republic of Moldova Maia Sandu and Prime Minister of Georgia Irakli Garibashvili.
Ukraine and Turkey are at the final stage of negotiations on a free trade area (FTA) after large moves made in the negotiation process, First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy Oleksiy Liubchenko said in an exclusive interview with Interfax-Ukraine.
“By the way, negotiations on an agreement on FTA with Turkey are now almost on completing. There have been significant positive moves in the negotiations,” he said.
Liubchenko also said that Ukraine had carried out preparatory work for negotiations with Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan.
Speaking about other areas of work of the Ministry of Economy in terms of international trade, he noted the unblocking of the work of the interdepartmental commission with Kazakhstan, following the meeting of which the ministry receives feedback from the parties.
“We are also systematically working with China, coordinated by Deputy Prime Minister Olha Stefanishyna. We have begun a joint study of the possibility of a free trade area agreement. The results will be known next year. On this basis, a political decision will be made whether to start negotiations. We are also actively working on preparations for negotiations with Indonesia and Vietnam,” he said.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Peruvian Ambassador to Poland and Ukraine concurrently Alberto Efrain Wilfredo Salas Barahona signed an Agreement between the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the Government of Peru on the abolition of visa requirements for short-term stays.
According to the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, the signing took place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on Thursday, July 15.
Thus, the agreement introduces a mutual visa-free travel regime for citizens of Ukraine and Peru for up to 90 days within 180 days.
“Expansion of visa-free travel from Peru will increase the number of contacts between people, will contribute to new cultural, professional, business contacts between our countries,” Kuleba said.
The parties also discussed promising areas of bilateral and multilateral cooperation between Ukraine and the Republic of Peru.
The agreement will enter into force after the parties complete the necessary domestic procedures. For citizens of Ukraine, there will remain the possibility of visa-free tourist trips to Peru for up to 183 days, which the Republic of Peru introduced by a unilateral decision in 2003.
