KIEV, January 26. /TASS/. Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson admitted that the Normandy Quartet that was established in order to resolve the conflict in Ukraine peacefully was a diplomatic decoy.

Speaking to Ukraine’s Rada TV channel, Johnson acknowledged that, after the start of the conflict in Ukraine, the West imposed sanctions on Russia and launched the Normandy Four - which he called a diplomatic decoy - and achieved nothing.

The Normandy Quartet was a four-way negotiation format, which included Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France, and it was supposed to achieve a peaceful resolution to the conflict in Ukraine’s southeast. This format was named after the location of the first meeting of the four leaders. During one meeting in 2015, the format adopted the Package of Measures on the Implementation of Minsk Agreements, sometimes referred to as "Minsk 2".

Earlier in December, German ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel said in an interview that the adoption of the Minsk Agreements was "an attempt to give Ukraine time to become stronger." According to Merkel, it was "clear for everyone" that the conflict was merely suspended and that the issue was not resolved, but "it was what provided Ukraine with precious time." She doubted that NATO states could have given as much support to Kiev back then as they do now. Her words were later confirmed by French ex-President Francois Hollande, who also participated in hammering out the Package of Measures. Later, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Merkel’s words about the Minsk Agreements turned out to be completely unexpected and a letdown for him.