REUTERS

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky says Ukraine must first regain control of the border with Russia before local elections are held in Donbas.

"The Russian president and I probably have a completely different view on the transfer of the border and on when it's possible, I'd say frankly," the head of state told a joint press conference with French President Emanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russian President Vladimir Putin following the Normandy Four summit in Paris December 9.

"And, indeed, I can openly talk about this, the Russian president ... he says that in Minsk [agreements] signed by our former president Petro [Poroshenko], the transfer of the border goes after the election. Naturally, I raise the issue of transferring the border before local elections," Zelensky said.

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The president noted he had presented valid arguments when addressing the issue during talks.

"Now we have different views, but I think that it's not by chance that we're talking about meeting in a few months, and it's not by chance that we're having a meeting of the four leaders," Zelensky emphasized. "We must find a way out, otherwise we won't move far."

As UNIAN reported earlier, Volodymyr Zelensky, in the Normandy Four negotiations proposed creating a subgroup within the framework of the Trilateral Contact Group in Minsk on restore Ukraine's control over the border with Russia in Donbas.