'Ukraine’s efforts to restart clashes tragic mistake’: Lavrov
The Ukrainian government’s efforts to restart clashes in the eastern part of the country will be a “tragic mistake” with serious consequences, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says.
"Any attempts by Kiev to resume combat activities would be a colossal and tragic mistake," Lavrov told Russia Beyond the Headlines (RBTH), a supplement to the German daily Handelsblatt, on Wednesday.
He said Russia and Germany are fully aware that the escalation of the crisis in Ukraine is dangerous.
"Our German partners and we understand well what the conflict's escalation could result in, for the whole of Europe and the international situation in general,” Lavrov noted.
The Russian minister also stressed that settling the crisis in Ukraine directly depends on “the strict adherence by all parties to all provisions of the February 12 Minsk agreements without any exception.”
Donetsk and Luhansk, the two mainly Russian-speaking regions in eastern Ukraine, have been hit by deadly clashes between pro-Russia forces and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations in April last year to crush pro-Russia protests there.
During peace talks in the Belarusian capital city of Minsk on February 11-12, the leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine reached a deal, dubbed Minsk II, on the withdrawal of heavy weapons from Ukraine’s front lines and a ceasefire, which officially went into effect on February 15. The two sides, however, have continued to engage in sporadic clashes.
More than 6,000 people have died in Ukraine’s conflict, the UN says. Around 1.5 million people have also been forced to flee their homes over the recent months of the turmoil.
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