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Russia curious what results Kiev expects from Normandy summit — envoy

It is unclear what outcome of a hypothetical summit Ukraine hopes for at a time when none of the decisions made by the previous summit have been implemented, Boris Gryzlov noted

MOSCOW, October 13. /TASS/. Russia remains curious what outcome of a future Normandy quartet summit Ukraine hopes for at a time when Kiev has not fulfilled the decisions of the previous one, Russia’s representative in the Contact Group for a settlement in the east of Ukraine, Boris Gryzlov, said after a video conference on Wednesday.

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He stressed that Ukrainian officials at different levels were indulging in rhetoric in the mass media about "getting off the hook of the Minsk agreements", about the need for "updating" them and about negotiations as "dead history."

"In a situation like this it is unclear what outcome of a hypothetical summit Kiev hopes for at a time when none of the decisions made by the previous summit have been implemented and the situation in the Contact Group and on the ground continues to degrade through Kiev’s fault," Gryzlov said.

He described Ukraine’s stance as absurd.

"Kiev’s officials participating in Normandy talks vow allegiance to the Minsk agreements without any exemptions all along, but at the same time they never stop attempts to exclude both Donetsk and Lugansk from conflict settlement talks. Acting with persistency that deserves better use Kiev is pressing for another Normandy quartet summit," he said.

In the meantime, in the Contact Group Ukraine does not bother to juggle with diplomatic terms and makes no secret of its real intentions to stall the talks in all respects. The situation on the political settlement track is most indicative, Gryzlov said.

"Instead of getting down to joint work with Donbass on determining final parameters of future coexistence in accordance with the Minsk agreements the Ukrainian officials have been trying to restart a discussion on the parties to the conflict and the content of the Minsk agreements, while that discussion was brought to an end in February 2015," Gryzlov said. "We have not seen a proper reaction from the OSCE or other representatives of the international community to Ukraine’s behavior on the ground and at the negotiating table."

The Contact Group held another video conference on Wednesday. The next one is due on October 27.

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Ukraine crisis Ukraine Eastern Ukraine

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