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November 25th, 2017 
Awake Goy 
nsnbc : German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko have discussed the aggravated situation in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas and coordinated further actions for the development of a UN peacekeeping mission. The two spoke on the sidelines of the European Union’s Fifth Eastern Partnership Summit in Brussels. The Summit acknowledged Ukraine’s European aspirations.
Merkel and Poroshenko issued a joint statement saying: “President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko met with Federal Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel in the framework of the working visit to Brussels. The parties discussed the dangerous developments in the Donbas provoked by the ceasefire regime violation by Russian militants, including cases of shelling of civilian objects, as well as the situation in Luhansk (Lughansk).”
The two also coordinated further steps to advance the initiative to deploy a UN peacekeeping mission throughout Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. Ukraine designates the rebelling Donetsk People’s Republic and Lughansk People’s Republic as “Russian occupied”. Russia for its part denies that it has troops there but acknowledged the “presence of volunteers” a.k.a. off duty Russian military troops lovingly described as “little green men” or “contractors”.
Merkel and Poroshenko also discussed the need to have a UN peacekeeping force control the Ukrainian – Russian border in the Donbas republics. The Minsk Accord that led to the ceasefire in eastern Ukraine stipulates that Ukrainian military and border services must be granted access to the border. This part of the accord has never been implemented.
According to the press service of the Head of State, Petro Poroshenko and Angela Merkel agreed to make maximum efforts to release the Ukrainian hostages in the Donbas and the political prisoners illegally detained in Russia and in the occupied Crimea as soon as possible.
Poroshenko stressed that the ongoing Russian aggression in the Donbas and the significant deterioration of the situation in the occupied Crimea required the continuation of the sectoral and economic sanctions against Russia. The parties also discussed the approximate schedule of contacts in the Normandy format. The so-called Normandy Four, including Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France, with the EU and the OECD on the sidelines, brokered the Minsk Accords and continue efforts to find a solution the armed conflict.
Meanwhile, delegates at the Eastern Partnership summit, which took place in Brussels on Friday, November 24, have adopted a joint declaration, which, in particular, expressed concern over violations of the principles of international law in many parts of the region. “The Summit participants remain deeply concerned about the continued violations of principles of international law in many parts of the region. The Summit participants call for renewed efforts to promote the peaceful settlement of unresolved conflicts in the region on the basis of the principles and norms of international law,” reads the declaration.
The EU considers the presence of Russian troops – mercenaries or other – in the Donbas as a violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty. The EU also considers Crimea as Russian-occupied Ukrainian territory. Russia, for its part, maintains that Crimea held a referendum – not recognized by the EU – and that “independent” Crimea then acceded to the Russian Federation.
The heads of state and government welcomed efforts and the EU’s strengthened role in conflict resolution and confidence building in the framework or in support of existing agreed negotiating formats and processes, including through field presence, when appropriate.
As for the EU membership prospects of Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, the summit participants “acknowledge the European aspirations and European choice of the partners concerned, as stated in the Association Agreements.” The Ukrainian side insisted on more ambitious formulations of the summit declaration, in particular regarding the pressure on aggressive Russia and the acknowledgement of Ukraine’s EU membership prospects, as stated in Article 49 of the Treaty on European Union.
F/AK – nsnbc 25.11.2017
Source Article from https://nsnbc.me/2017/11/25/merkel-and-poroshenko-discussed-conflict-in-eastern-ukraine/
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