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Outgoing president dismisses Ukraine’s envoy to Minsk talks

Poroshenko appointed Marchuk to represent Ukraine in the Contact Group on November 22, 2018

KIEV, May 20. /TASS/. Ukraine’s outgoing President Pyotr Poroshenko has dismissed the country’s envoy to the Contact Group on resolving the conflict in Donbass Yevgeny Marchuk, says an order published on the presidential website.

"Yevgeny Marchuk is hereby dismissed as Ukraine’s representative to the Trilateral Contact Group on the peaceful settlement of the situation in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions," the document reads.

Marchuk earlier wrote on Facebook that he had been sacked. "My friends, I have news for you: on May 19, I concluded my four-year long volunteer activities within the Minsk process," he said.

Poroshenko appointed Marchuk to represent Ukraine in the Contact Group on November 22, 2018, after former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma had left that position. Marchuk had previously served as Ukraine’s envoy to the Contact Group’s security subgroup.

On May 17, Poroshenko signed a decree dismissing Irina Gerashchenko, the presidential envoy for the settlement process.

On May 16, Gerashchenko said at a meeting of the "Minsk Platform" informal parliamentary group that she was quitting her activities in relation to the Minsk talks. She also emphasized the need to change the lineup of participants in the talks.

Gerashchenko served as Ukrainian Presidential Envoy for resolving the conflict in Donbass since June 17, 2014.