KIEV, February 4. /TASS/. At all levels, Ukrainian government officials rule out the possibility of engaging in a direct dialogue with the self-proclaimed people’s republics of Donetsk and Lugansk (DPR and LPR), although this form of communication is envisaged by the Minsk agreements, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba has said.
"We explain Ukraine’s vision of implementation of the Minsk agreements to every guest, because there is the Russian vision as well, and I assure you that the Minsk agreements cannot be implemented on Russia’s terms, which are based on a direct dialogue between Ukraine and the separate areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions [outside the Kiev government’s control]. It [the direct dialogue] is being imposed on us, and I assure you that it is being rejected during all meetings, at all levels," he said.
"This was done, for example, by [the head of the Ukrainian presidential administration] Andrey Yermak during the latest meeting [of Normandy Quartet political advisers] in Paris," he told the One Plus One TV channel on Thursday.
The minister reaffirmed that the Kiev’s rejection of a direct dialogue will remain unchanged during the next Normandy Quartet meeting of political advisers, due next week.
Efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Donbass are based on the Minsk Agreements, which particularly include moves to declare a ceasefire, withdraw weapons, declare amnesty, restore economic ties and conduct constitutional reform in Ukraine through dialogue with the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR, LPR), aimed at decentralizing power and providing a special status to certain districts in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
However, the negotiation process has actually stalled because of Kiev’s refusal to fulfill the political provisions of the Minsk accords. In particular, Kiev is reluctant to build any direct dialogue with the DPR and LPR and enshrine the region's special status in the constitution and demands to have control of Donbass’ border with Russia before the implementation of the political provisions of the accords. Meanwhile, under Paragraph Nine of the Package of Measures on the implementation of the Minsk Agreements, work to restore full control over the border should begin the next day after local elections take place and be completed only after a comprehensive political solution is found.