MOSCOW, February 15. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the Minsk agreements were a ruse by the West even before the revelations of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel in 2022.

The Russian leader's words are quoted in the book ‘Vladimir Putin. From the Annals of the XXI Century’ by historian and writer Alexander Myasnikov. In particular, the author recalls a conversation he had with Putin at an exhibition in the city of Manezh on November 4, 2022. Putin then examined, among other things, a booth dedicated to the Minsk agreements.

"[It was] deception, unfortunately, nothing but sheer deception," the author quoted the Russian head of state as saying. According to Myasnikov, two months later, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky admitted that he never intended to implement the Minsk agreements, and Merkel said that the agreements were meant to give Ukraine "time" to build up its military strength.