Putin demands Ukraine extend law on special status for Donbas

15.11.2019 09:29

Ukrinform

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Ukraine should extend the law on a special status for Donbas.

Putin told this to reporters after the BRICS summit in Brazil on Thursday, November 14, according to Hromadske.

"We hear from the leaders of Ukraine that another law on a special status for Donbas may be adopted. Which one? This is an absolutely key thing. If they approve something that is not agreed with 'LPR' and 'DPR,' then everything will instantly go into a deadlock," he said.

According to Putin, a "Steinmeier formula" also loses meaning, because it "is merely a tool for implementing the special status law."

The Russian president also recalled that the law on a special status for Donbas expires on December 31, 2019.

"[The law] expires on the 31st [of December]. Then what? What are we going to do in the Normandy format? This is a key question," he said.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said earlier that Ukraine would adopt a new law on a special status for Donbas, but this status would not be secured in the Constitution of Ukraine.