Ambassador: Meeting between presidents of DR Congo, Ukraine being prepared

Ukraine's Ambassador to the DRC, Vasyl Hamianin, said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

Asked whether preparations for a bilateral meeting are underway, the ambassador stated: "Yes, the work is persistent and highly focused."

Hamianin noted that previous arrangements for a meeting between the two leaders had already been made, but the meetings were postponed several times due to unforeseen circumstances.

"Once it was because of an escalation in eastern DRC, another time due to a very tight schedule — we only had 15-minute slots, and the third time President Tshisekedi was about to fly to Ukraine from Poland, but Russia launched massive missile strikes, and there were hits on Kyiv," the ambassador said.

He added that when presenting his credentials, it was important not only to extend an invitation to President Tshisekedi to visit Ukraine, but also to demonstrate that Ukraine knows and understands the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In this context, the ambassador shared an interesting moment from his meeting with the Congolese leader. Their conversation touched on specific matters, including football.

"When I presented Mr. Tshisekedi with a signed Shovkovskyi jersey, he was absolutely thrilled! He stood up and said, 'I still remember Blokhin!' I told him that he was also a legendary player, who played later. The President was a bit surprised that I knew about his football past — but that's one of our little tricks," Hamianin said.

Zelensky had his first-ever conversation with Tshisekedi on August 9, 2022. During the call, Zelensky emphasized the importance of overcoming the global food crisis caused by Russia's military aggression.