Russian President Vladimir Putin says he is not against the United States joining in the "Normandy format" of talks on Donbas settlement (Ukraine, Germany, France, Russia).
Talking to a press conference in Moscow on Thursday, 14 December, Putin said the United States is in fact a full-fledged participant in the Donbas settlement process.
"Regardless of whether they are within the "Normandy format" or not, they are still very deeply involved in the course of events taking place out there. Will they formally be included in the "Normandy format"? I do not know. Anyway, it does not depend on us, believe me. I've never been against it," said Putin.
Recall, the US special envoy for Ukraine Kurt Volker stated that he sees no point in joining the US to the "Normandy format".
Earlier, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that there was no need to change the "Normandy format". At the same time, he said, Ukraine welcomes more active participation of the US in the format of the Minsk process, including the Tripartite Contact Group.