UNITED NATIONS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th February, 2023) The Minsk accords demonstrated that any peace agreement on Ukraine should be more than just signatures on paper, it needs to offer a sustainable solution that addresses the underlying causes of the conflict, Assistant Secretary-General for Europe, Central Asia and the Americas Miroslav Jenca said on Friday.
"This is also what we have learned from the experience of the Minsk process: Peace is not just about signing an agreement. We need sustainable and implementable peace that addresses the root causes of the conflict and is in line with the UN Charter and international law," Jenca told a UN Security Council meeting. "This is particularly important given the complexity of the current context in Ukraine, but also with regards to its implications for the future of the European security architecture and indeed, the international order itself."
Despite not being a part of the Minsk accords, the United Nations has consistently and fully supported their implementation, he said.
The Minsk agreements were a complex series of measures negotiated by Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine in 2014-2015 in a bid to put an end to the armed conflict between the Kiev authorities and the breakaway region of Donbas.
Moscow repeatedly stated that Kiev was not fulfilling the deal, for example not granting self-government to the Russian-speaking region of Donbas.
In February 2022, Russia recognized the independence of the breakaway republics in Donbas and began a military operation to defend the territory from Ukrainian troops. The breakaway republics of Ukraine were incorporated into Russia last fall after referendums.
Last week, Volodymyr Zelenskyy admitted he never intended to implement the Minsk agreements. Both former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and former French President Francois Hollande, who participated in the Normandy format, admitted the same. They said that negotiating the Minsk accords with Russia was a stalling tactic to buy time to arm and train the Ukrainian military with no intention to implement their provisions. Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson, in turn, said that the Normandy format had been nothing but a "diplomatic imitation."
