In turn, First Vice Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Iryna Gerashchenko said that Russian Federation had long terminated diplomatic relations with Ukraine, having occupied Crimea and part of Donbas.
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They discussed the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine.
But he said it was hard to make the ceasefires longer for the moment because of the risk of militants using them to regroup and rearm, something he said they had done in the past. Ukraine denies the attack took place.
“The situation in Aleppo is unbearable for the people-the fighting must cease in order to provide the population with essential goods”, Mr. Steinmeier said.
Putin said at the time that there was no point in holding a new round of talks about the troubled peace process in eastern Ukraine on the sidelines of a G20 summit in China next month, stoking speculation Moscow might be preparing to abandon the Minsk process.
The draft proposal, obtained by the paper and published ahead of a planned meeting between US State Secretary John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, included making “independent, but synchronized, efforts” against IS and Al-Nusra Front terrorists in Syria.
Insisting it would fulfill its side of the bargain, Russia’s Sergei Lavrov said Kyiv had to also honour its obligations.
“I don’t think we’re now in a situation when someone is interested in cutting diplomatic ties (between Russian Federation and Ukraine)”, said Lavrov. “This is a last resort measure”, Lavrov said.
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Lavrov promised Moscow will fulfil its part of the bargain and that Russian Federation is ready to provide the West with more evidence about armed Ukrainian incursions into Crimea.
