The European Union welcomes the exchange of held persons between Kiev and the republics of Donbass and expects that the parties will continue to work on the implementation of the Minsk agreements to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. This is stated in a statement by the EU Foreign Service, released on Thursday in Brussels.
“This is the long-awaited next step on the road to implementing one of the measures agreed upon at the Normandy format summit in Paris on December 9, 2019. The EU expects all parties to continue working on the implementation of the Minsk agreements, including relying on recommendations agreed upon under the Norman format “, – is noted in it.
The document emphasizes that the EU fully supports the efforts of the Norman format, the OSCE and the tripartite Contact Group to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. “The full implementation of the Minsk agreements is the only way to achieve a sustainable and peaceful settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine. A permanent ceasefire, in particular, in response to the global appeal of the UN Secretary General Antoni Guterres, would strengthen confidence and ease the difficult humanitarian situation,” said in a statement.
The EU also calls for “ensuring freedom of movement across the line of contact for the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission and humanitarian actors, as well as access to the International Committee of the Red Cross for all detainees.”