European Council President Donald Tusk and Prime Minister of New Zealand Bill English held a meeting in Brussels on Tuesday, January 10, 2017.
Leaders of the European Union and New Zealand have discussed a role New Zealand has played in the UN Security Council over the last two years, among others conflict in Syria and Ukraine, economic sanctions extended by EU against Russia until July 31, 2017 in response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine:
“We discussed the crisis in Ukraine and the importance of full implementation of the Minsk agreements. The European Union’s sanctions against Russia were extended for six months just before Christmas due to the lack of progress in implementing the Minsk Agreements. We reiterate our call on all sides to respect Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity,” said European Council President Donald Tusk, according to the European Council official website
The European Council President also stressed the importance of New Zealand in the field of security.
“New Zealand is an important partner of the EU in the security field, and we warmly welcome your country’s participation in our Common Security and Defence Policy missions and operations. I briefed the Prime Minister on our decisions at the December European Council to increase cooperation and to allocate more resources to security and defence,” stressed Donald Tusk
