VIENNA, December 13. /TASS/. Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s revelation about the Minsk Agreements is chillingly frank, Ex-Austrian Vice Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache said.

"Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel stated that the Minsk Agreements had not been taken seriously and had been signed to buy Ukraine time <...> and in some sense make preparations for possible military developments. The frankness with which Ms Merkel is talking about is chilling," he said, addressing a panel discussion in Vienna. According to Strache, such remarks undermine confidence.

In an interview with the German newspaper Die Zeit published on December 7, Merkel described the 2014 conclusion of the Minsk Agreements as an effort to buy Ukraine time to become stronger. According to her, it was clear to everyone that the conflict was stalled and the issue had not been resolved, "but this was what gave Ukraine invaluable time." She doubted whether NATO countries would have been able to provide support to Kiev at the time to the same extent as they do now.