"Everything
is quiet, for the third day running, which is even strange," head of the
Petrov district Maxim Zhukovsky said
MOSCOW, March 6. /TASS/. Authorities of the districts in
the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR), which are located along
the line of engagement, say they have not fixed shelling from positions of the
Ukrainian military, the Donetsk News Agency reported on Sunday.
"Everything is quiet, for the third day running,
which is even strange," head of the Petrov district Maxim Zhukovsky said.
Reports about the quiet night also came from Makeyevka,
Gorlovka, Yasinovataya and the Novo-Azov district.
At a meeting of the Contact Group on settlement of the
situation in Ukraine’s south east, on January 13, the parties agreed the
ceasefire would begin on January 14, however the militia and the military
continue accusing each other of truce violations.
At the Munich Security Conference in February, Prime
Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Russia is concerned about several aspects
regarding settlement of the Ukrainian conflict. First of all, complete
ceasefire regime is still not established in Ukraine’s south-east; fire is
opened regularly along the line of engagement. Secondly, Ukraine still has not
adopted changes to its constitution, nor does it observe the legislation
regarding the special status of Donbass. Instead of elements of decentralization,
agreed with the regions, they adopt the so-called "transition
provisions," which contradicts the Minsk agreements. Thirdly, he
continued, Kiev still insists the elections in Donbass should be on the basis
of the new Ukrainian law without any discussions with the region, Kiev also
ignores its obligations for a wide amnesty of those who participated in the
events of 2014-2015.
Ceasefire is envisaged by the Minsk accords signed on 12
February 2015, after negotiations in the so-called "Normandy format"
in the Belarusian capital Minsk, bringing together leaders of Russia, France,
Germany and Ukraine. The package of measures also envisages weaponry
withdrawal, prisoner exchange, local election in Donbass, constitutional reform
in Ukraine and establishing working sub-groups on security, political, economy
and humanitarian components of the Minsk accords.
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al
Hussein, said in a comment on the 13th report on Ukraine, the document shows
that "the ceasefire in eastern Ukraine remains tenuous, with reported
violations of the ceasefire, the continued occurrences of indiscriminate
shelling and the presence of anti-personnel mines and remnants of war. Between
16 November 2015 and 15 February 2016, 78 conflict-related civilian casualties
were recorded in eastern Ukraine, bringing the estimated casualty figures since
the beginning of the conflict to more than 30,000 people, including at least
9,160 killed and 21,000 injured (figures include civilians as well as Ukrainian
armed forces, and members of armed groups).
"The implementation of the Minsk Agreements is the
only viable strategy for achieving a peaceful solution in certain areas of
eastern Ukraine controlled by armed groups, which, in turn, is key for
resolving the human rights crisis in Ukraine. This includes the restoration of
effective control by the Government of Ukraine over the border with the Russian
Federation and the withdrawal of foreign fighters, mercenaries and military
equipment," the commissioner said.
Source: ITAR-TASS 06-03-2016
