Policy of appeasement of Russia must stop – Oleh Lyashko

“It is necessary to stop the policy of appeasement of Russia and to switch to full containment and isolation of the aggressor, otherwise the risk of a major war in Europe would continue to increase”, Oleh Lyashko, Member if the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, noted at 10th Kyiv Security Forum held by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation Open Ukraine.

Moreover, according to Oleh Lyashko, today it is important to continue, to expand and to deepen sanctions against Russia, especially to impose strict economic sanctions. The politician finds it necessary to provide Ukraine with massive military assistance, including modern defensive weapons.

At the same time, according to him, one should restore the Geneva format of negotiations with the participation of Ukraine, the U.S., the EU, and Russia, instead of the Minsk and Normandy formats which have proved too narrow. Additionally, this format should be broadened by the participation of state-parties to the Budapest Memorandum: the United Kingdom, France, and China.

Oleh Lyashko also believes that the West should make a strategic decision on the future of Ukraine as an integral part of the Western, Euro-Atlantic civilization and on the allocation of large-scale resources to this and, namely: military, financial, economic, and humanitarian aid and, in particular, a new “Marshall Plan” for Ukraine.

Generally, Oleh Lyashko concluded that it was necessary to defeat Russia in the second Cold War which it itself had proclaimed and to accomplish its final pacification and democratization, as it had been done with the aggressor states after the Second World War.

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Kyiv Security Forum was launched by the Arseniy Yatsenyuk Foundation Open Ukraine in 2007 is an annual international event to high-level discussions on the current issues in the Black Sea region and wider Europe. The Forum aims at increasing security cooperation between the EU and the Black Sea region, raising awareness about regional developments among key regional players, promoting the role of independent and non-governmental actors in setting the security agenda in Europe.