Putin: Russia is ready to be a mediator in eastern Ukraine
Russia is ready to be a mediator in settling the conflict in the Donbas and a guarantor of possible agreements, the President of the Russian Federation stated.
"The only thing we can do is to create conditions for the negotiation process and take part in it as mediators and guarantors of the agreements reached,” Putin said in Bishkek, Russian Interfax news agency reported. "That is what we want and will do if our partners in Kyiv want."
Everything else, according to the President of Russian Federation, "can be done only by the Ukrainian people and their representatives.”
The official position of Ukraine regarding a peaceful settlement of the conflict in the Donbas is that attacks should be stopped first and then Russian troops should be withdrawn. Only then may the elections be held and special status established. However, Russia demands a different order of priorities for the Minsk Agreements.