The Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) talks scheduled on July 31 and August 2 will largely depend on the outcomes of telephone negotiations between the presidents of the Normandy Four countries comprising Ukraine, France, Germany and Russia, Verkhovna Rada first deputy speaker and Ukrainian envoy to the TCG humanitarian subgroup Iryna Gerashchenko said.
“Tomorrow first telephone negotiations in the Normandy format will be held over a long period of time, and the first ones involving new French President (Emmanuel) Macron (…) The issue of security and the release of hostages is the key one for Ukraine. We very much want some progress and headway in these issues,” Gerashchenko wrote on her Facebook on Sunday.
“Our Minsk talks, which will be held on July 31 (a Skype conference dealing with hostages) and on August 2 (involving all other groups, except for the humanitarian one) will mainly depend on the results of the Normandy teleconference,” she also said.
The talks between the leaders of the Normandy Quartet countries in the format of a teleconference are scheduled on Monday, July 24, OSCE Special Envoy to the TCG Martin Sajdik said on July 19.
