Contact group for Ukraine may meet within days - Poroshenko aide

15:58, 30.07.2014 1 min read

A top aide to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko confirmed on Wednesday that Belarus had offered to host a meeting of a trilateral contact group to seek a solution to the current military conflict in eastern Ukraine.

"The problem was where to meet, and so an idea arose that might help this matter materialize - to hold such a meeting in Minsk. Yesterday the president of Ukraine had a telephone conversation with the president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, and the result of that conversation was the position of Belarus that it and Lukashenko personally could help organize such a meeting," Valeriy Chaly, deputy chief of the presidential staff, told a briefing.

"I see this as a very partner-like move on the part of the Belarusian leadership," Chaly said, adding that he thought such a meeting might take place within days.

On Tuesday, the Ukrainian president's office said Poroshenko had asked Lukashenko to help organize a contact group meeting in Minsk on Thursday. Lukashenko supported a proposal by Poroshenko for Minsk to be the meeting venue.