Zelensky: Russia should Return Ukraine Control over its Border

The winner of the recent presidential elections of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky made a statement calling on Russia to give Ukraine the control over its border back. Zelensky began the statement, which was posted on his Facebook page, with the fact that he had long thought about the "common" between Ukraine and Russia. Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin said once again that between the Russian and Ukrainian peoples have much in common and even stood for single citizenship for the residents of the two countries. Zelensky noted that after the annexation of Crimea and the aggression in the Donbass, the only thing we have left in ‘common’ is the state border. And Russia must return control over every millimeter of the Ukrainian side. “Only then can we continue searching for ‘commonalities”, – wrote Zelensky. Zelensky also noted that “the prohibition of the petroleum products export, opening of points of delivery of passports to residents of the occupied territories, arrest of Ukrainians don’t bring the settlement of relations between our countries one iota closer and that our relations "cannot be called brotherly ones”. Separately Zelensky said that he is pleased that “Russian politicians have mastered a new genre for themselves: communication with him in a public arena. “The Internet, as we know, keeps all the information, and this discussion will be recorded by millions of people around the world”, – Zelensky said, having invited opponents “to the world of openness and publicity”. A few days ago Zelensky also commented on Vladimir Putin’s decision on Facebook to simplify the acquisition of Russian citizenship by residents of the areas of Eastern Ukraine controlled by Pro-Russian separatists. He, in particular, wrote that Ukraine will grant its citizenship to Russians fighting for freedom. Putin said in response that he was ready to think about granting Russian citizenship to all citizens of Ukraine, since Russians and Ukrainians, in his opinion, are “one people”. May 1, it became known about the new decree of Putin, simplifying the acquisition of Russian citizenship for a number of categories of citizens of Ukraine. Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, and Ukraine does not control several hundred kilometers of the state border with Russia in Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Svoboda.org