Any contacts with 'republics' aimed at legitimizing Russia's crimes in Donbas - Ukrainian Foreign Ministry

Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Kateryna Zelenko said this while commenting on a meeting between Ulrich Oehme, a Bundestag deputy and PACE member, with representatives of separate areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in Minsk.

"We strongly condemn the attempts of any contacts with the so-called republics from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine. Such contacts, albeit disguised as 'mediation,' in no way favor the achievement of peace but, quite the contrary, are harmful, aimed at legitimizing Russia's crimes against the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and international law in general," Zelenko said.

She emphasized that the formula for establishing peace in Ukraine is very simple – Russia withdrawing its troops and Ukraine restoring control over the state border.

"This position is supported by the German government, whose efforts in resolving the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in Donbas are highly appreciated in Ukraine. Ukraine sees any provocations by the apologists of Russia's aggressive policy as complicity in a crime," Zelenko said.

According to Russian media, Oehme attended a meeting in Minsk on December 15 with representatives of separate areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, at which he stated that at a January session, the PACE will launch an initiative to engage representatives of separate areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions in negotiations in the Normandy format.

op