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Donetsk People’s Republic will carry on integration with Russia — leader

Integration with Russia does not run counter to the Minsk Agreements, the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic stated

Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin Valentin Sprinchak/TASS

Head of the Donetsk People’s Republic Denis Pushilin

© Valentin Sprinchak/TASS

KIEV, December 17. /TASS/. The Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) will maintain the policy of integration with Russia, head of the DPR Denis Pushilin informed during Tuesday’s briefing.

"After the Normandy Four meeting, we understood who our friends and enemies are," he said. "We want to move in the same direction with Russia, and we will be steadily moving towards this goal, regardless of Kiev’s opinion." "Moreover, integration processes with Russia do not violate the Minsk Agreements in any way," Pushilin added.

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Donetsk slams Kiev’s policy in Donbass, vows to continue integration with Russia

For his part, head of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR) Leonid Pasechnik stated that Donbass would continue the process of integration with Russia regardless of the stance of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky and his Western partners.

"We call for strict adherence to the Minsk Agreements, the decisions of the Normandy format and obligatory coordination of all aspects of the advent of peace with representatives of both republics," he noted.

"At the same time, we think that integration with the Russian Federation does not violate the Minsk Agreements in any way, and we will be carrying it out regardless of whether Zelensky and his Western partners approve of it," Pasechnik stressed.

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