Pushkov hopes PACE understands Ukrainian problem cannot be solved without Russia
MOSCOW. June 26 (Interfax) - State Duma International Committee Chairman Alexei Pushkov hopes the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) will come to understand the impossibility of a full-value discussion and solution of the Ukrainian crisis without Russia.
"The only thing we can expect is that PACE will take a sober view of the Ukrainian situation, treat Russian foreign policy with less bias and understand in the absence of the Russian delegation that PACE loses a significant part of its authority without Russia," Pushkov told reporters on Thursday. He was asked what reaction he was expecting from PACE to the Federation Council's decision to repeal the permission to send Russian troops to Ukraine. The decision was made on Wednesday.
The Russian delegation to the Assembly led by Pushkov refused to attend the PACE session in June as the Assembly stripped the delegation of main powers in April because of the Russian conduct towards Ukraine. The Russian delegation branded the sanctions as discriminative and decided to abstain from the June session.
"Poroshenko will speak there today. The Russian delegation is absent but everyone understands that Russia is a major element of the equation, the crisis around Ukraine. If you remove Russia from that equation you will be unable to solve the Ukrainian problem. That is realized by both Washington and Brussels. In my opinion, PACE has yet to understand that," Pushkov said. Hence, Russia's absence from the Ukrainian debate makes crisis resolution "practically impossible," he noted.
"The PACE discussion of that issue will not be full-fledged until Russia comes back. So, I expect a growing number of PACE deputies to understand this fact," the State Duma committee head stated.