Kiev's anti-Russia sanctions sabotage peace agreements: deputy FM
Xinhua, September 17, 2015 Adjust font size:
Ukrainian authorities are sabotaging the new Minsk agreement by introducing sanctions against Russia instead of implementing measures aimed at alleviating tension in the conflict-torn Donbass region, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Georgy Karasin said Thursday.
"As of now, practical actions of Kiev show that it has switched from pretending to implement the Minsk agreement to direct sabotage of key provisions of the agreement," Karasin was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.
On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a decree imposing sanctions on some 400 individuals, including officials, politicians and journalists, as well as 105 entities of Russia and other countries in response to the decision of pro-independence leaders in eastern Ukraine to hold separate elections.
Local elections in Ukraine have been set for Oct. 25, but the Ukrainian government said they cannot take place in Donbass for security reasons. In response, the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics have scheduled their own elections for October and November.
In February, leaders of Germany, France, Ukraine and Russia clinched a package of measures which promised to give greater autonomy to separatist-held areas in eastern Ukraine. Endi