Watch above: Ukrainian opposition leaders comment after meeting with Merkel
Ukrainian opposition leaders, Vitali Klitschko and Arseniy Yatsenyuk, flew to Berlin on Monday to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss Ukraine’s ongoing political crisis.
The German government has played a prominent role in trying to broker negotiations between Ukrainian opposition leaders and the country’s President Viktor Yanukovych in recent months.
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Klitschko, leader of the Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reform (UDAR) party, said it was important to seek the opinion of Ukraine’s neighbouring countries – especially Germany – on the situation.
“We have our vision of how to get out of the crisis, but we’re interested to know the opinion of neighbouring countries, and especially a leading country such as Germany,” he told reporters outside an airport in Kiev.
Yatsenyuk said Ukraine must look to build an “inclusive” government that works alongside its European neighbours.
Watch below: Opposition leaders leave for meeting in Berlin with Merkel
The two leaders will discuss potential sanctions on Yanukovych’s government by the European Union during their visit.
They will also meet with with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and German lawmaker Andreas Schockenhoff, a member of Merkel’s Christian Democrat party.
Germany has said the release of jailed protesters in Ukraine and the end to the occupation of Kiev’s City Hall are an “encouraging” sign that the government and opposition can find common ground.
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