2 yıl önce

Key things to know about Minsk accords and why their future looks bleak

Russia's President Vladimir Putin himself has said the Western-brokered peace agreements seeking a peaceful resolution to the eastern Ukraine conflict "do not exist now".

AP

Eastern Ukraine's rebel-held breakaway regions have been locked in a conflict with Kiev's army since 2014.

The ongoing standoff between Russia and the West has shone the spotlight on the Minsk agreements, which observers say are as good as dead after Moscow's recognition of two rebel-held breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that the Western-brokered peace agreements seeking a peaceful resolution to the eastern Ukraine conflict "do not exist now".

Last decade, Ukraine and the Russian-backed separatists signed the two agreements to resolve the conflict in Donetsk and Luhansk that has killed more than 14,000 people. The accords were negotiated in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.

But Moscow, which is accused of aiding the separatists, and Kiev, where street protests led to the ouster of a pro-Russian leader in 2014, interpret the accords very differently.

The separatist regions have been on the boil since a Kremlin-backed insurgency following Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014, and escaped Kiev's control that year.

This decision would also end the Minsk agreements. By saying "no" to a political solution based on the Minsk agreements, the Kremlin shuts the door on diplomacy and creates an excuse for war. 2/2
— Kaja Kallas (@kajakallas) February 21, 2022

The recognition of the two separatist territories in #Ukraine is a blatant violation of international law, the territorial integrity of Ukraine and the #Minsk agreements.

The EU and its partners will react with unity, firmness and with determination in solidarity with Ukraine.
— Ursula von der Leyen (@vonderleyen) February 21, 2022

Here are key things to know about the Minsk accords.

Minsk 1

1) Ukraine and the separatists agreed to a 12-point ceasefire deal in September 2014. The pact quickly broke down, with violations by both sides.

2) Its provisions included prisoner exchanges, deliveries of humanitarian aid and the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the conflict zone.

Minsk 2

1) Russia, Ukraine, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the leaders of the two separatist regions signed a 13-point agreement in February 2015.

2) The leaders of France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine, gathered in Minsk at the same time, issued a declaration of support for the deal.

3) It set out military and political steps that have not been implemented. A major blockage has been Russia's insistence that it is not a party to the conflict and therefore is not bound by its terms.

4) Point 10, for example, called for the withdrawal of all foreign armed formations and military equipment from Donetsk and Luhansk. Ukraine says this refers to forces from Russia, but Moscow denies it has any forces there.

5) Some other key points included a comprehensive ceasefire and the beginning of dialogue on interim self-government for Donetsk and Luhansk — in accordance with Ukrainian law — and acknowledgement of their special status by parliamentary resolution.

6) Other points stressed amnesty for people involved in the fighting, constitutional reform in Ukraine, and elections in Donetsk and Luhansk on terms to be agreed with their representatives, among others.