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Zelensky’s remark about UN mission in Donbass shows Volker’s mission failed, says expert

Earlier on Friday, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said he was very cautious about the idea of deploying a peacekeeping force in Donbass
US Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky
US Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker
© AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky

MOSCOW, September 13. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s statement that he prefers to take a cautious attitude to the possibility of deploying a peace-keeping force in Donbass indicates that the policy of the US Department of State’s special envoy, Kurt Volker has failed, the director of the Center for Current Policy, Alexei Chesnakov, told TASS on Friday.

"Zelensky’s statement that he is very cautious and skeptical about [his predecessor] Pyotr Poroshenko’s idea of deploying a UN peacekeeping force in Donbass indicates that Volker’s policy has failed," Chesnakov said.

"Volker, who opted for Poroshenko and worked hard to press for his pseudo-peaceful initiatives, now remains silent in embarrassment. For two years he declared whenever the opportunity offered itself that putting Donbass under the UN control would be the sole right way of settling the conflict and that Ukraine would not agree to any other solution," Chesnakov said. "Now it has turned out that Ukraine thinks otherwise. Volker has nothing to say for the time being. Apparently, he is trying to find a way out of this rather awkward situation."

Earlier on Friday, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky told the Yalta European Strategy (YES) forum in Kiev he was very cautious about the idea of deploying a peacekeeping force in Donbass, because he would not like to see a repetition of the Abkhazian or Transnistrian scenario.