MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th April, 2021) The Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) will hold an extraordinary videoconference on the Donbas crisis settlement on Wednesday in light of escalating tensions in Ukraine's breakaway region.
The TCG brings together representatives of the Ukrainian government and the two self-proclaimed republics in the country's east, as well as Russia and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
The previous meeting took place on April 7 and was deemed fruitless by the Donbas authorities and Russia, which accused Kiev of blocking all attempts to establish ceasefire verification mechanisms.
On April 13, working groups for security, political issues, humanitarian matters and economy were supposed to hold separate meetings to lay the basis for the new TCG videoconference.
The Luhansk People's Republic reported that the meeting of the group in charge of political issues did not last long, as it was disrupted by Kiev representatives, who insisted that a delegate from the Donetsk People's Republic be expelled from the talks.
Over the past few weeks, tensions in Donbas have escalated, with Kiev and the self-proclaimed republics accusing each other of violating the ceasefire. The situation drew international attention, with many countries and the United Nations expressing concerns over risks of a conflict flareup.
The Kremlin has characterized the situation on the Russian-Ukrainian border as "frightening" and vowed to bolster security. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Moscow, not being a party to the conflict, could not ensure a ceasefire in the Russian-speaking Donbas region, but noted multiple provocations on Ukraine's side.
