© Sven Hopp / ReutersForeign Ministers of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin, France Jean-Marc Ayrault, Russia Sergey Lavrov and Germany Sigmar Gabriel, Security Conference in Munich, Germany February 18, 2017.
German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel says he sees no need to add the US to the current format of four-way ministerial meetings concerning the Ukraine settlement, noting, however, that close contact with Washington on the matter is "necessary."
"There must be close contact with the United States, but we think this [Normandy] format... should be maintained," Gabriel said after he met with his Russian, French, and Ukrainian counterparts on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference on Saturday.
The Minister added that the matter had been discussed with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, and that he had "agreed with this."There have been reports of possible expansion of the four-way Normandy format by adding other countries to the peace process in the east of Ukraine, primarily the US. Most recently, former Ukrainian President Leonid Kravchuk said that the Normandy format must be taken to a new "higher level" with the participation of the US.
Comment: A wonderful 'tongue-in-cheek' exposé of 'the times' and The Times. The deep state is not so much a structure but an inside system that maneuvers and manipulates the pulse of the nation without electability, accountability or approval. It seeks to work undetected, but the Trump win exposed the beast, an unexpected turn of events that impacts politics, big money and the road forward.