Russia wants to divide the west, Tusk tells Obama

European Council President Donald Tusk visited the White House on Monday, where he met US President Barack Obama to discuss the Ukrainian crisis, the situation in Greece and negotiations on the transatlantic trade agreement.

During Tusk’s visit to Washington, both leaders stressed that a tough response to Russia was needed over its role in the Ukraine crisis. Tusk told Obama that Russia is trying to create division between EU member countries and between the EU and the USA.

“Our enemies who use propaganda against us, commit acts of violence and violate the sovereignty of our neighbours, they want to weaken the political community of the western world. They are trying to divide us, inside Europe and between Europe and the US,” Tusk said.

Obama praised the Minsk agreement negotiated by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, but said that unless ‘strong monitoring and implementation’ of the ceasefire plan is carried out, “these agreements will be meaningless.”

“We are all committed to making sure that we uphold the basic principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity that have been threatened by Russian aggression. We have been able to maintain strong unity with respect to sanctions,” Obama told reporters.