“Gone in the opposite direction”: how Ukraine “implements” the Minsk agreements

Kiev fulfilled all the obligations it took at the Normandy Four talks in Paris in 2019 on the situation around Donbass.

This was stated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Dmitry Kuleba on the air of the ICTV channel.

“As for the Minsk agreements, I do not know a single country of the European Union that would claim that Ukraine does not comply with the Minsk agreements.

We all remember the Normandy summit in Paris in 2019.

From this summit, the leaders came out with certain agreements, and everything that Ukraine took upon itself, we did everything, ”said the head of the Foreign Ministry.

According to him, Moscow allegedly neglected its obligations.

He also reiterated the assertion that Ukraine would under no circumstances comply with the Minsk agreements “on Russian terms.”

“Such an option as pressure on Ukraine and forcing Ukraine to do something is not viable.

There may be proposals, but if they are unacceptable for us, they will be rejected,” the minister stressed.

Earlier, at a press conference following negotiations with German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock Kuleba, he said that he had notified his German counterpart of Kiev's refusal to conduct a direct dialogue with the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR, although this is provided for by the Minsk agreements.

According to him, this is a "red line" for the Ukrainian leadership.

“We will not enter into a direct dialogue with the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People's Republics.

This is not provided for by the Minsk agreements.

An attempt to establish such a dialogue is exclusively in the interest of the Russian Federation in order to get rid of the status of a party to the conflict and turn itself into a mediator,” the minister said.

• Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba

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• © Bernd von Jutrczenka/picture alliance

Meanwhile, Moscow has repeatedly stated that Russia is not a party to the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

“In accordance with the Minsk agreements, Russia is a mediator, and they want to make us a party to the conflict.

There is no such thing in the Minsk agreements, and we did not agree to this, ”Vladimir Putin emphasized on December 23, 2021 at the annual press conference.

Importance of Minsk-2

Meanwhile, in the EU and the US, statements are increasingly being made about the need to implement a set of measures approved in 2015.

So, American President Joe Biden spoke about this to Vladimir Zelensky in a telephone conversation in December 2021.

“The President stressed that the United States continues to support the Normandy format and ongoing efforts to implement the Minsk agreements, including noting that the United States generally supports this process,” the White House reported.

In turn, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on February 7 at a joint press conference with the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell in Washington noted that it was Minsk-2 that was the best way to resolve the conflict in Donbass.

In his opinion, the process is hampered due to the lack of a prescribed sequence of steps that the parties must take, and Russia's alleged unwillingness to comply with existing agreements.

At the same time, nowhere in the text of the Minsk Agreements is any participation of Russia in the implementation of this set of measures.

“Minsk” does not clarify some issues of the sequence of actions of the parties ... The agreements talk about the special status of Donbass, and I believe that with the proper sequence of actions, the Ukrainians will be ready to move forward, ”said Blinken.

The Secretary of State also recalled the upcoming meeting of political advisers to the leaders of the Normandy Four countries, which is to be held in Berlin in the coming days.

This meeting will be a continuation of the dialogue between the countries, which resumed on January 26 in Paris.

Its participants have already confirmed that the Minsk agreements underlie the work of the Normandy format.

As follows from their joint statement, they are "aimed at reducing existing differences."

• US State Department

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• © Yasin Ozturk/Anadolu Agency

French President Emmanuel Macron also spoke about the lack of alternatives to the Minsk agreements at a press conference following a meeting with Putin.

“Minsk agreements can really resolve and make progress on the crisis in Ukraine.

I will talk about this ... with Mr. President Zelensky," he said.

A similar point of view was expressed in mid-December by Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi.

“A peaceful solution cannot be reached without the implementation by both sides of the Minsk agreements of 2015,” he said during a speech to the deputies of the lower house of parliament.

Czech Foreign Minister Jakub Kulganek made a call to implement the agreements on the sidelines of the OSCE Ministerial Council meeting in Stockholm as soon as possible.

Internal Ukrainian contradictions

In Kiev itself, there is no consensus on the need to implement the Minsk agreements.

So, on February 1, Volodymyr Zelensky, at a joint press conference with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, said that Ukraine is responsible for the agreements on Donbass and knows who should implement them.

However, on the same day, Oleksiy Danilov, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine, in an interview with the Associated Press, noted that the execution of Minsk-2 could destroy the country.

In this regard, he expressed the opinion that it is necessary to sign new agreements.

The next day, Dmitry Kuleba, in an interview with the Polish newspaper Rzeczpospolita, said that Ukraine would not comply with the key conditions of the Minsk agreements - to grant Donbass a special status and the right of veto.

Vladimir Putin, at a press conference following a meeting with Macron, expressed the opinion that "the authorities in Kiev have set a course for the dismantling of the Minsk agreements."

According to him, this conclusion is prompted by the lack of implementation of the Steinmeier formula in Ukrainian legislation, as well as decisions on constitutional reform, amnesty, local elections and legal aspects of the special status of Donbass.

Experts interviewed by RT note that the head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry is disingenuous, declaring that Kiev has fulfilled any obligations in the Donbass, since no key points from the set of measures have been implemented.

“The only thing that has really been done is steps to destroy the status of the Russian language in Ukraine, including at the legislative level.

In addition, constant military demonstrations on the demarcation line in Donbass and strikes against civilians in the DPR and LPR do not fit with Kuleba’s statement.

In this regard, it can be stated that Kiev not only failed to fulfill its obligations, but also went far back in the opposite direction, ”Vladimir Shapovalov, deputy director of the Institute of History and Politics of the Moscow State Pedagogical University, said in a comment to RT.

• Independence Square in Kiev

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• © TR/NurPhoto

He also noted that the inconsistency in the statements of official Ukrainian representatives on "Minsk-2" is a consequence of the lack of unity on this issue in the political circles of the country.

“Today it is the weakest political team that has been in power since 1991.

It is obvious that the low professional suitability of politicians leads to such a mismatch.

At the same time, in fact, no one in the current leadership of Ukraine supports the implementation of the Minsk agreements, no matter how much Zelensky convinces us otherwise.

They just use different methods to delay the implementation of Minsk-2 and shift the responsibility to Russia, ”the analyst explained.

In addition, as Ukrainian political scientist Alexander Semchenko emphasized in an interview with RT, Kiev is interested in an ongoing conflict in the Donbass.

“Firstly, it is beneficial for its Western curators, and it is necessary to fulfill the tasks set by the West.

Secondly, it solves domestic political issues, allowing you to fence yourself off from a disloyal electorate and explain the failures in the economy and social policy,” the expert explained.

In his opinion, if Europe and the United States were really interested in resolving the conflict in Ukraine, they would use all possible tools to force Kiev to de-escalate and fulfill its obligations, and would not be limited to just statements.

“The assets of many Ukrainian politicians are located abroad.

And we know how the West likes to use sanctions, threatening to seize or alienate foreign assets in order to achieve their goals.

However, the West did not take any such actions either in relation to Poroshenko or in relation to Zelensky.

So, in general, they are satisfied with Kiev’s policy there,” Semchenko added.

At the same time, Vladimir Shapovalov believes that Europe is already tired of the ongoing tension on the eastern border of the EU.

In addition, they are afraid that a possible military conflict will make Europe a hostage to the situation.

“Some European politicians are beginning to realize that the current situation could lead to Europe becoming a battlefield.

Therefore, processes are beginning to take place in which certain European politicians raise their voice in favor of a peaceful resolution of the situation.

And the first step in this direction is the fulfillment by Ukraine of its obligations,” the analyst concluded.