The rebellious regions of Donbass must receive autonomy within Ukraine, and elections must also be held in this territory.
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This opinion was expressed in an interview with Kommersant by Portuguese Foreign Minister Augusto Santos Silva.
Answering the question why EU anti-Russian sanctions are still in effect, he explained that there is no progress yet in the implementation of the Minsk agreements.
“We call on all conflicting parties to comply with the agreements adopted in Minsk and do not blame any of the parties. We see that both sides of the conflict are working hard to make progress in negotiations and practical steps towards a settlement, but, unfortunately, we see no basis for lifting sanctions. Therefore, we will preserve them as a tool for bringing together the parties to the Ukrainian conflict,” Silva said.
In his opinion, Russia must take some practical steps and take a number of measures to achieve the goals of the Minsk agreements.
“This also means that the Ukrainian authorities need to talk with Donbass leaders. I think that we will be ready to reconsider the sanctions as soon as there is some success on the issue of resolving the conflict,” the head of the Portuguese Foreign Ministry believes.
He also convinces that the main task at the current stage should be security.
“We must find a way to help the two main participants in this conflict (the Ukrainian authorities and the leaders of Donbass) implement practical measures to restore security in the region with the help of an OSCE or UN mission. And another very important area from a political point of view is the determination of the principles according to which Donbass will receive autonomy and elections will be organized. We (that is, the European Union) do not see an alternative to electoral processes, during which all parties will have to come to an agreement,” the publication’s interlocutor noted.
In addition, Silva emphasized that the introduction of an international peacekeeping mission in Donbass is hampered by the fact that “the parties to the conflict have still not been able to establish good relations.”
Earlier, as PolitNavigator reported, in Kyiv were outraged by the statement of the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who called the conflict in Donbass a civil war.
Read also: UN for the first time recognized the conflict in Donbass as a civil war.