Russia blocking Trilateral Contact Group's work for almost three months - Ukraine at OSCE

Russia blocking Trilateral Contact Group's work for almost three months - Ukraine at OSCE

Ukrinform
Russia has been blocking constructive work within the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) for almost three months now, demanding that Ukraine implement the political provisions of the Minsk agreements, without fulfilling security commitments.

Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the International Organizations in Vienna Yevhenii Tsymbaliuk said this at a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on Thursday, October 22, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"Every week, we listen to the statements delivered by the Russian delegation in this hall, in which the Russian side tries to blame Ukraine for the so-called non-implementation of the political provisions of the Minsk agreements. Yet, in fact, it is the Russian side that continues to block the work of the political working group of the TCG for almost three months already, obstructing virtually all discussions on practical issues on its agenda and preventing implementation of the respective provisions of the Common Agreed Conclusions of the 2019 'Normandie' summit in Paris," Tsymbaliuk said.

He said that all three basic Minsk documents (the Minsk Protocol, the Minsk Memorandum and the Package of Measures) "start from a number of specific security provisions, which must be fulfilled to enable us to move forward."

In particular, he recalled that one such provision was an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire. Although the OSCE SMM reports a relatively calm situation on the contact line, the Ukrainian diplomat said that Russian armed groups resort almost every day to armed provocations and targeted shootings at Ukrainian positions.

Another important security provision in the Minsk agreements is adherence to the line of demarcation as of September 19, 2014, when the Minsk Memorandum was signed. "As it turned out, Russia never intended to honor it. To find out the truth, you may ask residents of the town of Debaltseve, who have been living under Russia's occupation since February 2015, on how this provision was implemented by the Russian side," Tsymbaliuk said.

"Third, the withdrawal of all heavy weapons. In the last two weeks, the SMM reported 95 weapons in violation of their withdrawal lines, 89 of which in the Russia-occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine," the Ukrainian diplomat said.

Similarly, due to Russia's fault, the provisions on effective monitoring and verification of the ceasefire regime by the OSCE are not working in full force. "We all know from the SMM reports, what restrictions and impediments the SMM faces on a daily basis in Russia-occupied parts of Donbas, especially in the areas adjacent to the state border," Tsymbaliuk said.

He noted that in these conditions, it is really astonishing how stubbornly the Russian side demands that Ukraine proceed with the fulfilment of the political part of the Minsk agreements. "This remarkable alacrity should be rather directed at the implementation of Russia's own commitments, which it has undertaken by signing all Minsk agreements with Ukraine and the OSCE as a mediator between Russia and Ukraine," the Ukrainian ambassador said.

He once again called on the Russian side to unblock the constructive work of the TCG and its working groups.

op

While citing and using any materials on the Internet, links to the website ukrinform.net not lower than the first paragraph are mandatory. In addition, citing the translated materials of foreign media outlets is possible only if there is a link to the website ukrinform.net and to the website of a foreign media outlet. Citing and using materials in offline media, mobile apps, Smart TV are allowed only with written permission from Ukrinform. News and publications marked as "Advertisement" and "PR" and articles in the section "Releases" include promoted content, and an advertiser is responsible for the content.

© 2015-2024 Ukrinform. All rights reserved.

Website design Studio Laconica

Extended searchHide extended search
By period:
-