Minsk Agreement Wiki

First, Russia, the real aggressor, continued to pretend that it was a mediator (like France and Germany) and not a party of struggles. Secondly, the parties disagreed on the importance of a number of unclear points in the agreements; As a result, they have not implemented parts of the agreements. Third, the Minsk II agreement left it to Russia to decide whether Ukraine had changed its constitution to Russia`s satisfaction, and then to regain control of Ukraine`s eastern border. Not surprisingly, Russia has not yet done so. The Trilateral Contact Group, which negotiated the two Minsk agreements in Belarus, is composed of representatives of Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE. The OSCE monitored the talks, Belarus was only the host. Minsk-1 was signed by TCG representatives: the February 2015 Minsk Agreement (signed by the DPR, LPR, Russia, OSCE and Ukraine) aimed to end the conflict and reintegrate rebel-held territory in Ukraine in exchange for greater autonomy for the region,[14][15] but the agreement was never fully implemented. [16] Although fighting generally subsided after the ceasefire came into effect at 00:00 ETE on February 15, skirmishes and shelling continued in several parts of the conflict zone. [46] Shelling and fighting in Debaltseve continued, with DPR chief Alexander Zakharchenko stating that the ceasefire did not apply to this area. [47] In southern Donetsk Oblast, fighting continued between DPR forces and members of the Azov battalion in villages near Mariupol.

[47] [48] August 16, 16. In February, Minsk II seemed on the verge of collapse. [49] [50] The separatists continued a heavy attack on Debaltseve. Both sides said they would not withdraw heavy weapons as stated in the agreement while fighting in Debaltseve continued. [51] Reuters described the ceasefire as a “stillbirth” in Debaltseve. [52] The Ukrainian armed forces were forced to withdraw from Debaltseve on February 18, so that separatist forces would retain control of the city. [53] In February 2014, former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych fled Kiev after months of street protests. Russia annexed Crimea in March. Hostilities broke out in eastern Ukraine, where a Russian-backed separatist movement began to conquer cities. The Ukrainian armed forces went on the offensive and appeared ready to retake the separatist-held areas by August.

But Russian reinforcements arrived across the border, pushing the Ukrainians away and threatening to penetrate further into the heart of the country. A hasty peace deal between Ukraine, Russia and the separatists ended the attack. But this agreement, known as Minsk I, quickly collapsed. In January 2015, fighting broke out again. In February, Germany`s Angela Merkel and France`s François Hollande intervened to revive the ceasefire and negotiate a “package of measures to implement the Minsk agreements” known as Minsk II. The second Minsk agreement was signed later, in February 2015. The “DNR” and the “NRL” are not recognized as independent states by any real country, not even by Russia, which created and controlled them. The Minsk agreements use the term “certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts” (or “certain districts.

“, ORDLO for short) to designate areas not controlled by the Ukrainian government. Ukrainian official newspapers use the same term ORDLO to refer to the areas of the two Donbass oblasts, or separate terms ORLO for Luhansk and ORDO for Donetsk. The so-called “Donbass Reintegration Law,” which Ukraine passed in January 2018, designates them as occupied territories. According to Jörg Forbih, it also had other positive results: hostages from both sides of the conflict were exchanged. In addition, the agreements have become the main point of reference for Western sanctions imposed on Russia, an aggressor country that is an important shield against those in the EU and the United States who want to lift them quickly. And finally, the agreements, as well as the sanctions, had probably stopped the spread of the Donbass war further along Ukrainian territory: neither the Russian project “Novorossiya” nor the land bridge to Crimea became a reality. Nevertheless, the demand for autonomy has become an integral part of the Minsk agreements. To do this, Ukraine must change its constitution, because the country is a unitary state.

Before the war, only one Ukrainian region had autonomy – the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. The law amending the constitution was passed in first reading, but it is unlikely to pass the necessary second reading in the foreseeable future, as the idea of Donbass autonomy is facing resistance in Ukrainian society. Then, in his commentary for the Financial Times in July 2016, US President Barack Obama wrote: “We should agree that sanctions against Russia must remain in place until Moscow fully fulfills its obligations under the Minsk agreements.” Amid a sharp reduction in violence, the Four held a meeting in Normandy on 2 October following an agreement on the resumption of the implementation of Minsk II agreed on 1 September. .