Russian foreign ministry blames Ukraine for failed peace deal

The ruling of the Ukrainian parliament regarding the status of rebel-controlled territories in the east violates the terms of the Minsk Agreement reached on February 12, says Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

According to Lavrov, he appealed to the foreign affairs ministers of France and Germany on March 17, asking them to partake in a “three-party demarche” against Ukraine due to its “glaring violation” of the Minsk agreement.

“The Ukrainian parliament, in accordance with suggestions from Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko—which is especially perplexing to me, since the Ukrainian president had supported the Minsk terms from February 12—has come to a ruling that essentially rewrites the terms of the agreement, and, to put it more blatantly, this is a glaring violation of the terms,” stated Lavrov.

On February 12, the heads of Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany reached an agreement reinstating a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine. The agreement included a provision for Ukraine to grant “special status” to the two separatist-controlled territories.

The Ukrainian parliament has ruled to amend provisions on the special status of the rebel-controlled regions in the east. According to the amendments, special status will be granted to the regions only after elections take place in accordance with Ukrainian law.

Representatives of the self-proclaimed People’s Republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine have said that the ruling destroys the “fragile peace” of the Minsk agreement.

Read more: What’s going on in eastern Ukraine? Is there peace or are they still shooting?