Loading ...Demilitarized area, Kiev-Donetsk dialogue to be focus of Normandy 4 talks in Minsk
The creation of a demilitarized zone in southeast Ukraine and the start of a peace dialogue between Kiev and the rebels are to top the agenda of the ‘Normandy Four’ talks in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, on Wednesday, a source told RIA Novosti.
During the talks, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), Germany and France are expected to insist on Russia taking responsibility for controlling the establishment of the demilitarized zone in southeast Ukraine, the source added.
Meanwhile, Russia believes that it’s the OSCE that should be responsible for the establishment of the demilitarized zone.
Those proposals were voiced by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande during talks with Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Friday, the source said.
According to the source “permanent dialogue” would require representatives of Kiev and the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk to meet every two or three weeks.
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The ‘Normandy Four’ leaders believe the outcome of the Minsk talks will determine the US decision on whether to supply arms to the Kiev authorities, the source said.
The rebel forces assured Moscow that they’re ready to implement a ceasefire as soon as Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko gives the same order to the Ukrainian military.