MINSK, June 16. /TASS/. The Contact Group on the Ukrainian settlement has practically reached agreement on the issue of the withdrawal of less than 100mm caliber weapons, Vladislav Deinego, the representative of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) at the Minsk talks, said on Tuesday after meeting of the Contact Group and its working subgroups.
He noted "some positive dynamics." "We have reached agreement on certain provisions, in particular, on weapons of less than 100mm caliber. Now technical details are being coordinated. It means that the issue has been practically settled," he said.
Under the Minsk accords signed on February 12, 2015 after 14-hour negotiations between the Normandy Four leaders (Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Francois Hollande, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko), the parties to the conflict agreed to pull out heavy weapons of 100mm caliber and more from the line of engagement. However, the sides have been using weapons of smaller caliber. So, the issue of pulling out smaller caliber weapons from the engagement line has become topical.