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Russia’s OSCE envoy blasts Kiev for sabotaging Minsk deal implementation

A diplomat regrets a peaceful settlement in the Donbass region does not suit Kiev

MOSCOW, November 11. /TASS/. Ukraine is not ready to implement the political portion of the Minsk agreement and is trying to sabotage efforts in all areas, Russian Ambassador to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Alexander Lukashevich, said, speaking at a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on Thursday. The text of his speech has been posted on the Russian Foreign Ministry’s website on Friday.

"Apparently, a peaceful settlement in the Donbass region does not suit Kiev," the diplomat said. "In that case, it will have to comply with the political part of the Minsk agreements, address the issue of holding elections, enact a special status law and embark on the Constitutional reform. It looks like the current Ukrainian government is not ready for this."

According to Lukashevich, Wednesday’s meeting of the Contact Group clearly demonstrates that "Kiev is sabotaging the work in all directions." "The separation of forces in Stanitsa Luganskaya has not begun," he noted. "After that the parties will have to agree on new areas and carry on dialogue on political issues. This is not happening either."

"Kiev representatives’ behavior has once again confirmed Ukraine’s reluctance to comply with the Minsk agreements the way they were agreed, even though the fact that there is no alternative to them was confirmed at the Normandy Four summit in Berlin," the envoy said. "We can hear statements from Kiev that the Minsk accords should be amended, that they allegedly do not meet Ukraine’s interests. In line with this logic, they invent preconditions for holding elections in Donbass saying that it is necessary to gain control over the border, deploy an armed international mission to the region and so on."

Lukashevich emphasized the fact that the dialogue on a political settlement has been blocked under the pretense of ongoing clashes. "It is necessary for Kiev to keep the conflict going in order to shift the blame on to their neighbor for their Maidan promises turning out to be lies. "The ‘Russian threat’ is a good source of income. This concerns not only the authorities in Kiev. "

"There is no alternative to the Minsk agreements for a peaceful resolution of the crisis," Lukashevich said. "Their implementation - no matter how difficult it is for Kiev, Donetsk and Lugansk - is the only chance to preserve Ukraine as a unified state where the rights of different regions and population groups are respected equally."