... levels. We have common interests – in trade or the fight against international terrorism. I am cautiously optimistic that our relations will improve again in the foreseeable future.
For that to happen, Moscow would have to be ready to implement the Minsk Agreements of 2015 to bring peace to Eastern Ukraine.
Have you read them?
A long time ago.
If you refresh your memory, you will see that Russia is not mentioned in the Agreements at all. It is up to the parties to the conflict – Kiev and Donbass – to fulfil their obligations. It was absolutely wrong to link the internal conflict in Ukraine with EU – Russia relations. Russia had worked ...
... for Europe 3.0. South Tyrol Case for Donbass
Five years ago, in February 2015, the first steps towards a vision for peace in Ukraine were taken with the Minsk II agreement. Five years is a long time not only in human life, but also in European history: ... ..., and the country remains a bleeding wound of Europe with a profound negative impact on the overall relationship between the Russian Federation and the West. The tragic deaths of more than 12,000 people and more than 23,000 injured remind us of the human ...
... radical nationalist elements in Kiev. Thus, Moscow should support Zelenskiy and show maximum flexibility when it comes to the Minsk agreements and shows of good will. This could also mean making concessions on gas transit and restoring economic relations with Kiev.
The opposite view supposes that Ukraine’s political pendulum hasn’t reached its high point yet, and that the distribution of political power in 2020 will continue to change in Russia’s favor. Moreover, it says that the degree to which Zelenskiy is independent from Ukrainian oligarch groups is still ...
Russia need not concern itself about a new security architecture in Europe: eventually, one will grow out of its ongoing confrontation ... ... assumption that Russia would become permanently associated with the EU without sharing institutions with it is also history.
The Ukraine crisis has divided Europe and Russia, but it has also pushed Russia to pivot toward itself. This means seeing itself not ...
... convinced it is obvious to all responsible politicians in Europe but it was so comfortable to hide behind this vague platform that was certainly imposed on the EU by the Russophobic minority.
I recently heard a statement by an adviser of President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky (I don’t remember who exactly that person was). Anyway, he spoke in the same vein: “The Minsk agreements are important because they ensure the preservation of anti-Russia sanctions.” This is why some forces in Kiev need the Minsk agreements but not to abide by them.
Europe, primarily France and Germany as co-authors of the Minsk agreements, should and I hope do send the necessary signals to Kiev, all the more ...
... the active approach of French diplomacy cannot influence progress in implementing the Minsk Agreements. The keys to resolving the conflict in Donbass are primarily held by... .... That said, Macron was the first European leader to feel a change in the nature of Russian-Ukrainian relations and to try to use this new trend. The change of power in... ... window of opportunity for cautious movement forward on Donbass. The new president of Ukraine intends to resolve the issue. His initiatives have received cautious support...
... the self-proclaimed republics would be out of the question. This can be interpreted as a step towards non-compliance with the Minsk agreements. Additionally, since Ukraine is a parliamentary-presidential republic, and since V. Zelensky does not have his own faction and will not have a sufficient ... ... the next (or early) elections, he will be significantly restricted in his legislative maneuvering. This applies to shifts in Russia–Ukraine relations as well. I should also add that the Ukrainian economy is very strongly tied to the West, and it is ...
Franco-Russian Conversation with Andrey Kortunov and Michel Duclos
On 25 November, Russia ... ... given that the last thing the country needs today is an escalation of tensions with Ukraine. Although the initiative came from the Ukrainian side, Russia then responded... ... resolution of the crisis with Ukraine, more so than the US, which is not part of the Minsk agreements. The Ukraine issue is primarily European, which means that Europe can...
... Moscow would lose all its current influence on the situation, effectively becoming an outside witness to Ukrainian nationalists engaging in a “mopping-up” operation in Donbass. As far as Moscow is concerned, the commitment of Western countries to the Minsk agreements is by no means a sure-fire guarantee that the agreements will be observed by Kiev.
[vii]
Irvin Studin:
How China and India Can Keep the Peace in Ukraine
Moscow’s flexibility resulting in greater pressure on Russia.
Whereas the Ukrainian government fears the erosion of the West’s anti-Russian consensus and the weakening of pressure on Moscow, the Russian government has reasons to believe that, should Moscow make any significant concessions with regard ...
... should safeguard the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission only, provided that the observers are fulfilling their obligations as set out in the Minsk Agreements. Any other use of the peacekeepers would effective constitute an on-the-ground revision of the Minsk Agreements, to which Russia is firmly opposed. Accordingly, the number of Blue Helmets in Eastern Ukraine should be modest — preferably a few hundred, or a few thousand at the most.
The Ukrainian side is insisting on a “full” UN peacekeeping mission in the territories of the Donetsk and Luhansk people’s republics, which equates to a much broader ...
