Berlin, 20 Jan (Xinhua) -- Diplomatic officials from Germany, the United States, France, and Britain held talks in Berlin, the german capital, on 20 January, focusing on the situation in eastern Ukraine.
German Foreign Minister Berberk, US Secretary of State Blinken, French Foreign Minister Le Dreyon, and British Foreign Office Secretary of State for Middle East and North Africa, Clefferley, attended the talks.
At a news conference after the talks, Berberk said Germany and the United States agreed that the only way out of the Ukraine crisis was political dialogue. She stressed the importance of the "Normandy model" in resolving the Crisis in Ukraine and called on Russia to take action to ease current tensions.
Blinken said on social media on the same day that the talks were productive, and the four countries agreed that if Russia chooses conflict rather than diplomatic approach to solve the problem, it will face serious consequences.
Le Drian said in a statement after the meeting that he stressed the importance of dialogue with Russia under the framework of the "Normandy model", the US-Russia Strategic Stability Dialogue, and the NATO-Russia Council, and Europe should maintain unity and mutual support in the dialogue with Russia.
Klefley said on social media that the four countries agreed to jointly deal with "Russia's destabilizing behavior."
On 19 July, Blinken exchanged views with Ukrainian President Zelenskiy in Kiev, the capital of Ukraine, on the situation in eastern Ukraine. Blinken plans to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov in Geneva, Switzerland, on the 21st.
Recently, relations between Ukraine and Russia have accelerated, with both sides deploying large amounts of military personnel and equipment in the border areas of the two countries. The United States, Ukraine and NATO said that Russia has gathered heavy troops in the area close to the eastern border of Ukraine and has the potential to "invade". The Russian side denied this, stressing that NATO activities threaten russia's border security and that russia has the right to mobilize troops within its territory to defend its territory. (Participating reporters: Xu Yongchun, Xu Feng, Li Dongxu)