Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Ukraine has not fully participated in the work of the Union of Independent States (CIS) from the very beginning.
“Ukraine once signed the fundamental documents on the CIS, but in fact it never joined in the full format. Ukraine has not ratified these documents,” Putin said at a meeting of the CIS Council of Heads of State.
According to the president, Kiev initially avoided full-scale cooperation. Putin noted that some countries are members of the CIS even though they do not work in its format.
The head of state noted that co-operation within the CIS is developing against the background of a complicated geopolitical situation.
“At the same time, the commonwealth remains a reliable and, undoubtedly, in-demand and effective format of cooperation, within which the member states build relations solely on the principles of partnership, mutual benefit and consideration of each other’s interests,” Putin said.
In his opinion, behind this common diplomatic formulation there are real cases and the real state of relations.
Putin emphasised that Russia’s economic ties with its CIS partners are expanding despite the threat of secondary sanctions from the West. He also called for expanding the use of national currencies in settlements between the Commonwealth member states.