LUGANSK, December 16. /TASS/. The constitutional amendment bill tabled by Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky regarding the decentralization of power is aimed at strengthening presidential powers and only imitates implementation of the Minsk Agreements by Kiev, envoy of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) to the Contact Group for settlement in eastern Ukraine’s political subgroup Rodion Miroshnik told TASS on Monday.
The bill primarily eliminates local and regional state administrations and establishes the position of prefect - state representative overseeing compliance with the Ukrainian constitution and laws by local self-governance institutions. Prefect will be appointed and removed from office by Ukrainian president at the recommendation of the cabinet of ministers. Prefects will practically substitute governors that are in place now, however, they will only serve a three-year term instead of five years equal to one term in the office of Ukrainian president. According to the bill, prefects suspend local government laws on suspicion of violations the Ukrainian constitution or laws and refer them to court simultaneously.
"The draft changes have little to do with decentralization which Kiev was obliged to implement in accordance with the Minsk Agreements. On the contrary, it is aimed at establishing a presidential top-down command structure with increasing its influence over local self-governance," he said.
Miroshnik underlined that the "the draft bill on amendments to the Ukrainian constitution proposed by Zelensky have nothing to do with implementation of the Minsk Agreements or decisions made by the Normandy Four."
"Any attempts by Zelensky or any other representatives of Ukrainian authorities to present this as implementation of the Minsk Agreements is nothing but manipulation. Indeed, the Minsk Agreements envisage a constitutional reform on the basis of decentralization but only taking a special status for Donbass into account. However, this is precisely what Zelensky is trying to turn a blind eye to," he added.
Minsk Agreements and special status law
Peace settlement of the conflict in Donbass rests on the Package of Measures, known as Minsk-2, that was signed by the Trilateral Contact Group on Ukraine comprising senior representatives from Russia, Ukraine and the European security watchdog OSCE on February 12, 2015, after marathon 16-hour talks between the leaders of the Normandy Four nations, namely Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine. The 13-point document envisages a ceasefire between Ukrainian government forces and people’s militias in the self-proclaimed republics in Donetsk and Lugansk and subsequent withdrawal of heavy weapons from the line of engagement. The deal also lays out a roadmap for a lasting settlement in Ukraine, including amnesty, resumption of economic ties, local elections and a constitutional reform to give more autonomy to the war-torn eastern regions.
The document was approved and supported in a joint declaration signed by the Russian, Ukrainian and French presidents and the German chancellor. In the declaration, they pledged to exert their influence over the sides in question to facilitate the implementation of the Package of Measures. Later, the Package of Measures was approved in Resolution 2202 of the United Nations Security Council, which urged all the concerned parties to ensure its full implementation.
Back in October 2014, Ukraine’s President Pyotr Poroshenko signed a law on self-governance in certain areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk republics, establishing a special status there for three years. However, while the law was never implemented in Ukraine, the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) extended its effect every year. In March 2015, Poroshenko violated the Minsk agreements, introducing amendments to the law which effectively halted its implementation. The law’s effect was repeatedly extended by Ukrainian authorities and this time was supposed to lose its force on December 31, 2019. However, the Verkhovna Rada (parliament) once again extended the law for another year on December 12.