MOSCOW, December 10. /TASS/. The Normandy Four summit in Paris has achieved the highest possible results so far, since the validity of the Minsk agreements has been reaffirmed there. However, difficulties with their interpretation persist, Chairman of the Russian Federation Council’s (upper house) Foreign Affairs Committee Konstantin Kosachev said on Tuesday.
"There are some results, and they are the best [one’s] at this stage. The validity of the Minsk agreements and the subsequent accords stemming from them have been reaffirmed. On the other hand, difficulties with the interpretation, for example, the disengagement of forces along the line of engagement persist. However, we will find out the details later, primarily based on how the agreements will be implemented," Kosachev wrote on his Facebook page.
In his view, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky is in a difficult position, because it turns out that "it is much more difficult for him to come to terms with extremists in his country than with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin." "The ball is perhaps in Europe’s court. If it demonstrates unwavering firmness and shows that it will not back those who are willing to fight ‘to the bitter end’ and who consider the Minsk accords to be a ‘surrender,’ then the protests will not become widespread, and Zelensky will hold on to the opportunities to move towards peace," the senator stressed.
According to Kosachev, it is very important that the meeting and bilateral talks between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders took place. "The fact that Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin was satisfied with the outcome of the talks, and he said as much talking to reporters (‘a thaw’ is the term of the day) speaks volumes. That means that the conversation turned out to be meaningful. Any other version would hardly suit our leader. As a matter of fact, that was the key condition for our delegation’s arrival in Paris," he stressed.
The Normandy Four summit that lasted more than four hours took place in Paris on Monday evening. Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky met in the Elysee Palace. After that, the Russian and Ukrainian presidents held bilateral talks for the first time since Zelensky was elected president in April 2019.