PARIS (Reuters) – The meeting which brought together representatives of Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany on Thursday in Berlin was “difficult” in particular because of Moscow’s insistence on demanding negotiations direct between Kiev and the pro-Russian insurgents of Donbass, said the Elysée on Friday.
“Russia accepted the negotiation on the merits, but finally insisted that it be written that Ukraine negotiates directly with the separatists, which constitutes Ukraine’s only red line”, underlines the French presidency.
A new meeting at the level of the advisers to the Heads of State and Government of the countries of the Normandy format is scheduled in two weeks, she specifies.
Russia, which has massed tens of thousands of troops on Ukraine’s borders raising fears in the West of a new invasion of the country after the annexation of Crimea in 2014, has long called for direct negotiations between Kiev and the separatists that she argues, way to legitimize these.
The implementation of the Minsk agreements, which were supposed to bring peace to the Donbass in exchange in particular for increased autonomy for the Russian-speaking regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, is one of the pillars of the multilateral discussions aimed at allowing a military de-escalation around Ukraine.
Negotiations on this point are mainly taking place at European level, in the “Normandy format” (France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia) which allowed the signing of the Minsk protocol in 2014.
At the same time, Moscow is conducting negotiations with the United States alone on the establishment of a new security architecture in Europe, in particular by demanding an end to NATO’s expansion towards the East and particularly towards Ukraine. , although the latter’s accession to the Atlantic Alliance is not planned.
(Report Michel Rose, written by Tangi Salaün, edited by Blandine Hénault)
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