Volker: deployment of peacekeepers in Donbas according to Russia’s proposal will further divide Ukraine
The introduction of UN peacekeepers into the conflict zone in the Donbas according to the scenario proposed by Russia will aggravate the division of Ukraine, as stated by Special Envoy of the US State Department on Ukraine Kurt Volker, who arrived in Kyiv to participate in the forum "Yalta European Strategy" on Saturday, September 16.
Volker stressed that the dispatch of peacekeepers by itself is an "interesting offer" but the international forces should replace the Russian troops in the conflict zone and ensure control over the borders. This contrasts Putin’s earlier proposal to place the "blue helmets" exclusively "on the line of demarcation and on no other territories."
The conflict resolution in the Donbas will not solve the problem of the Crimea, Volker believes. Even Russia's compliance with the terms of the Minsk agreements would not lead to the lifting of sanctions imposed because of the annexation of the Crimea, he said in Kyiv.
Earlier, the idea of introducing "blue helmets" to the Donbas was supported by the US State Department. The introduction of UN peacekeeping forces to the east of Ukraine could become a means of protecting Ukrainian citizens and a pathway to restoring Ukrainian sovereignty and territorial integrity, stated US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.
The peacekeepers should have a broad mandate throughout the occupied territory of Ukraine up to and including the border with Russia, Nauert added.