Germany dissatisfied with implementation of Minsk Agreements
Germany is not satisfied with the state of implementation of the agreements reached in Minsk on February 12, 2015, and intends to continue work to resolve the conflict through the "Normandy format" (consisting of Ukraine, Germany, France, and Russia), according to a statement published on the website of the German Foreign Office.
"Thanks to the Minsk Agreements, we have succeeded in containing the conflict in the east of Ukraine and preventing a fire in the region. With the political will today, it is still possible to make progress as before, as shown by the successful exchange of hundreds of prisoners in late December. At the same time we cannot be satisfied with the state of implementation [of the "Minsk Agreements"] after three years,” the statement says.
Germany stresses that too little has been done to resolve the conflict, which has resulted in the deaths of over ten thousand people.
"Again and again the armistice is broken; not least in the winter months, the fighting has had devastating consequences: people do not have enough coal for heating, water and food," the statement said.
Germany called on all parties to the conflict to show political will to implement the Minsk agreements, stressing the priority of stabilizing the security situation and withdrawing heavy weapons from the region.
In addition, the statement says that a potential United Nations peacekeeping mission may provide opportunities for implementation of the Minsk agreements.
It notes that Germany, together with France, will continue to work intensively to resolve the situation in the Donbas through the "Normandy format."
The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that, three years after its adoption, Russia has still not fulfilled a single point in the package of measures designed to implement the agreements reached in Minsk (Belarus).