Kremlin says Minsk agreement in "deplorable" shape

The implementation of the internationally-brokered agreement aimed to settle the Ukraine crisis is in "deplorable" shape, the Kremlin said Tuesday before the upcoming meeting of foreign ministers of the Normandy quartet.

"The situation is far from being promising and productive. So far we cannot but acknowledge the deplorable situation in terms of the implementation of the Minsk agreement," the TASS news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying.

However, Peskov added that the Normandy quartet remained the main foundation for resolving the crisis, and Moscow considered the work within this format extremely important.

Foreign ministers from the Normandy format, composed of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine, are scheduled to meet on Wednesday in Berlin to discuss the protracted crisis.

The Minsk agreement was signed in February 2015 in the Belarussian capital and is aimed at reaching a peaceful settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

Since then, however, Russia has accused the Ukrainian authorities of reluctance in implementing the agreement, while Kiev has criticized Moscow for supporting insurgents in the Donbass region.

The West has imposed several rounds of sanctions against Russia over its alleged role in the crisis and what it said is a failure to fulfill the agreement, which has strained ties since the start of the crisis in early 2014. Endi