LUGANSK, July 26. /TASS/. Ukraine is unwilling to resume offline talks of the Contact Group on the settlement in Donbass, since it is more difficult to protract offline talks than those held online, Rodion Miroshnik, the negotiator for the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) in the political subgroup, said on Monday.

"The online format is more convenient for Ukraine from the point of view of the ability to protract the talks and block any possible solutions under the Minsk agreements that Ukraine, as [President Vladimir] Zelensky pledged in Paris, is committed to," he wrote ironically in his Telegram channel. 

"The current negotiating process the Ukrainian delegation is taking part in cardinally differs from the "behind closed doors" talks and this format seems to be more fitting for protracting the talks and spreading false narratives about them than the traditional format of offline meetings. Basically, this is why Kiev is so unwilling to return to offline consultations in Minsk. Kiev simply lacks interest in reaching an accord," he said.

He recalled that the Contact Group talks had been held online since March 11, 2020 due to coronavirus restrictions. He also recalled that at the latest session of the Contact Group Russia had suggested the next session on August 26 be held offline in Minsk. "The OSCE, Russia, the LPR and DPR (Donetsk People’s Republic - TASS) have supported this initiative but Kiev’s negotiators stayed silent. So, we are waiting for the phantasmagorical explanations of the refusal from Ukrainian speakers. I think it won’t be long," Miroshnik noted.

He condemned Ukraine’s reasoning for not holding talks in Minsk by the fact that Ukraine, like Western nations, did not recognize Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s victory at last August’s presidential polls as beyond any criticism. He stressed that Ukraine’s delegation used to come to Minsk to discuss the conflict in Donbass rather than have talks with the Belarusian president. Apart from that, in his words, neither the pandemic quarantine measures nor the lack of air service between Ukraine and Belarus can serve as a pretext not to hold offline Contact Group talks in Minsk. The Ukrainian delegation can take a chartered flight to Minsk and the delegation members will only have to present negative coronavirus tests or vaccination certificates.