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Putin says agrees with Poroshenko on need to bolster OSCE mission

The Russian leader says political reforms should be carried as soon as possible

ST.PETERSBURG, June 17. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he agrees with Ukraine’s President Pyotr Poroshenko that there is the need to enhance the mission of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).

"There is the need to carry out as soon as possible political reforms that will lay basis for the final settlement in the security sphere," Putin told the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

"Some things should be done in parallel. I agree with Pyotr Poroshenko that there is the need to reinforce the OSCE mission up to allowing the monitors of the OSCE mission to carry small arms," the president said.

The Russian leader said some other things can be done aimed at increasing security. "But one cannot delay the solution of key political issues indefinitely saying that not everything has been settled in this area."

He reminded that the February 2015 Minsk accords had several key points but still they have not been implemented. "Everything is written there: constitutional amendments that should have been adopted by the end of 2015. But where are these changes?" Putin said.

"A law on a special status of these territories that we call ‘unrecognized republics’ should have entered into force," he added. "This law was passed by the country’s parliament but it does not still work." The law on amnesty was adopted by Ukraine’s parliament but has not been signed by the president, he added.

"How can any elections be held or how can one speak about holding an election process amid the anti-terrorist operation? Where in the world is this happening? We do not even speak about this loudly," Putin said, calling to deal with restoring the economy and humanitarian area.

The delay in these reforms explaining this by the acts of violence in the zone of disengagement of conflicting parties in Donbass is "just a pretext not to do anything," he said.