Rex Tillerson
U.S. Secretary of state Rex Tillerson asked his European counterparts on Tuesday, April 11, why American voters should care about the conflict in Ukraine. About it reports Reuters with reference to Minister of foreign Affairs of France Jean-Marc Ayrault.
According to him, the meeting of foreign Ministers of the G7 countries Tillerson has openly questioned why American taxpayers should worry about Ukraine, torn in the last three years of separatist conflict.
According to Ayrault, he said Tillerson that in the interests of U.S. taxpayers — that Europe was safe and strong politically and economically, not weak and torn apart.
Later the acting as the official representative of US state Department mark Toner refused to confirm that Tillerson questioned the need to support Ukraine, reports RIA Novosti. According to Toner, he has no idea what he was talking about Ayrault. “Our position has not changed, we continue to firmly support the Ukrainian government and the Minsk process,” he said.
Toner confirmed Tillerson phone call to Ukrainian President Viktor Poroshenko on Tuesday, during which he assured Poroshenko in Washington’s support for the Minsk agreements and Ukraine’s territorial integrity.
The West imposed sanctions against Russia in 2014, accusing it illegitimate, in his view, the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and support of rebels in Eastern Ukraine during the conflict, which killed more than 10 thousand people.