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Truss doubles down Ukraine support in meeting with Russian counterpart

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The UK is planning to complete negotiations to join trade alliance the Trans-Pacific Partnership by the end of next year, Liz Truss has said.
The global nuclear pact was also discussed, as ministers noted the importance of Iran resuming talks after welcoming a new president in August.

Foreign secretary Liz Truss has met with her Russian counterpart today to double down on support for Ukraine.

Russia, which annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, has been accused of trying to destabilise its eastern European neighbour state.

“The Foreign Secretary expressed concern about rising tensions across Europe and re-stated the UK’s support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, urging the Russian government to de-escalate the situation,” a foreign office spokesperson said.

Truss and Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov also discussed the situation in Belarus, another of Russia’s neighbours.

“The Foreign Secretary urged Foreign Minister Lavrov to use Russia’s position of influence to encourage the Lukashenko regime to enter talks with opposition leaders,” the spokesperson added.

Moscow will soon propose a new European security pact, according to Lavrov at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)  today, which he hoped would push the brakes on NATO’s expansion in eastern Europe.

The global nuclear pact was also discussed, as ministers noted the importance of Iran resuming talks after welcoming a new president in August.