Ukrainian Defense Minister Andriy Taran says Ukraine plans to invite Japan to join the Crimean Platform.
"In addition, Andriy Taran said that Ukraine plans to invite Japan to participate in a new format of international cooperation, the Crimean Platform, which is designed to end the [Russian] occupation of Crimea," the Ukrainian Defense Ministry's press service said in a statement on March 16.
Read alsoUkraine approves strategy to end Russian occupation of Crimea
During this first-ever visit of the Ukrainian defense minister to Japan, Taran expressed his conviction that it would give a new impetus to the development of bilateral, Ukrainian-Japanese defense cooperation.
The minister recalled that in 2018, Ukraine and Japan signed a Memorandum of Cooperation in the field of defense.
According to him, Ukraine is interested in cooperation with Japan and expects that the interaction of NATO member states, the United States, and partners in the EU and the UN could create "essential conditions for countering many modern challenges and threats."
The minister thanked Japan for its assistance to the military medical institutions of Ukraine, which has topped US$3 million since 2016.
Crimean Platform to end Russian occupation
- On September 23, 2020, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who participated in the general debate of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, called on partners to join an international platform for the end of the Russian occupation of Crimea.
- In December 2020, Zelensky announced that the creation of the Crimean platform had already been backed by powers on both sides of the Atlantic.
- The platform will operate at several levels. The first, the highest one, is the political level, which will involve heads of state and government. The second level is that of top diplomats and defense chiefs, the third is the inter-parliamentary level, and the fourth will involve non-governmental experts. An expert network will be created to enhance the effectiveness of government action, as well as engage additional intellectual resources in the platform's work.
