BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th August, 2020) German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said before departing for Kiev on Monday that Berlin sought more rapid progress in the Minsk process to settle the conflict in Ukraine's eastern region of Donbas.
On Friday, the German Foreign Ministry said that Maas was going to pay a one-day working visit to Kiev on August 24 to discuss Normandy format.
"We want to move forward faster in the Minsk process, so today I am going to Kiev. My visit falls on the Ukrainian Independence Day, on which I cordially congratulate all Ukrainians. This day, in particular, is an incentive for us to continue intensive work to resolve existing conflicts, namely in the east of Ukraine," Maas said.
Berlin believes that the current and the longest ceasefire in eastern Ukraine since 2014 can be used for "important political signals," which can be used to develop a positive impulse.
"The ceasefire, which has lasted more than four weeks, is the longest since 2014, and this is an encouraging sign. We want to develop this further. Therefore, today, together with my [Ukrainian] counterpart [Dmytro] Kuleba, Prime Minister [Denys] Shmygal and President [Volodymyr] Zelenskyy, I will assess how this positive momentum can be used to send important political signals," Maas said, adding that he was also expected to meet with representatives of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine.
The top German diplomat went on to say that the two countries had also "managed to expand bilateral cooperation" in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Germany continues to support "important reform projects in Ukraine in the areas of justice and anti-corruption," he added.
Since April 2014, the Ukrainian government has been conducting a military operation against the self-declared republics of Donetsk and Luhansk. Prospects for peace have been discussed in various formats, including during the meetings of the contact group in Minsk, which, since September 2014, has already adopted three documents regulating steps to de-escalate the conflict.
The eastern Ukrainian peace process saw a breakthrough on July 27 when negotiators signed an exhaustive list of measures on how to maintain the peace in the volatile region. The measures include a blanket ban on deploying military equipment or using drones in reconnaissance, sabotage, or offensive missions in sensitive locations. In an unprecedented step, a system of holding ceasefire violators accountable was also agreed upon by the sides.
