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Russian Security Council concerned with resumed shellings of Donbas — Kremlin

Provocations have resumed at the contact line in Donbas over the last several days

MOSCOW, November 6. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has discussed with Russian Security Council permanent members the resumed provocations on the contact line in Donbas, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday.

"The exchange of opinions took place, and concern was expressed in connection with resumed provocations at the contact line in Donbas over the last several days," Peskov said. "In particular, it concerns shellings of positions of LPR and DPR [self-proclaimed Luhansk and Donetsk republics]," he noted.

Normandy Four political directors to discuss prospects of Minsk-2 before ministerial meeting

A diplomatic source told TASS that political directors of the Normandy Four (Russia, Ukraine, France, Germany) would hold a coordination session in Berlin on Friday  before the ministerial meeting.

"Such meeting is planned," the source said. "It will be held at the level of representatives of foreign ministries’ department heads. After that, a ministerial meeting will start," he noted.

Today’s meetings will in general focus on "the process of implementation of the Minsk Agreements with emphasis on weaponry withdrawal and demining," the source said. "The political process and understanding the prospects of the Minsk Agreements are also important," he added.

The meeting of Normandy Four foreign ministers is expected to start at 2pm [local time] at the German foreign minister’s residence for official guests at Villa Borsig.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will arrive in the German capital from Paris where he is taking part in the UNESCO 38th General Conference.

The last meeting of the Normandy Four foreign ministers took place in Berlin on September 12 in the framework of preparing to the summit held in Paris on October 2.

Normandy format

The Normandy format brings together Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The format was first established in June 2014, when the four leaders held talks on the Ukrainian crisis during D-Day celebrations in Normandy.

On February 12, the sides signed the Minsk agreements on the settlement of the situation in Ukraine after negotiations in Minsk.

The Minsk accords envisage ceasefire, weaponry withdrawal, prisoner exchange, local elections in Donbas, constitutional reform in Ukraine and establishing working sub-groups on security, political, economy and humanitarian components of the Minsk accords.