KIEV, June 2. /TASS/. The leader of Ukraine’s parliamentary faction Opposition Bloc on Tuesday demanded that ceasefire agreements reached in Minsk, Belarus, in February, should be enshrined in law.
"The authorities are not a step closer to implementing the Minsk agreements. There is still no progress towards resolving economic issues," Yuriy Boyko told a parliamentary meeting, adding that "indexation of wages and pensions amid rising inflation remained a thorny issue".
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Boyko said the ruling coalition continued to satisfy its own political ambitions, paying no attention to people’s problems.
"The Minsk agreements should be enshrined in law. Against the backdrop of the international community's efforts to resolve the conflict, the parliament’s inactivity looks at least irresponsible," he said, noting that Monday’s hearings at the French Senate confirmed this.
The Opposition Bloc’s press service said that French senators on June 1 discussed current developments and future prospects for Ukraine. Opposition deputies from the Verkhovna Rada also attended the meeting in Paris.
Participants signed a joint declaration, calling, among other things, for unquestioning support and full implementation of the Minsk agreements, prevention of infringement of freedom and arrests of journalists as well as the Ukrainian opposition’s unhampered work within the law.
The February 12 peace deal struck in the Belarusian capital by leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France envisaged a ceasefire between Ukrainian government forces and militia starting from February 15.
This was to be followed by withdrawal of heavy weapons from the line of military engagement by at least 15 kilometres (9 miles), prisoner release and agreement for international observers to monitor the truce.
Based on September’s stillborn Minsk peace protocol, the deal also laid out a road map for a lasting settlement in Ukraine, including local elections and constitutional reform to give the war-torn eastern regions more autonomy.