VIENNA, May 6 (RIA Novosti) – The opposing sides in Ukraine need to agree on steps to settle the ongoing political crisis in the country under the observance of the Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.
“[The agreements] need to be fulfilled by the Ukrainians, by both the [current] regime and those opposing it, because they live in one and the same country, and they are obliged to show mutual respect on an equal basis to agree their practical steps in fulfilling one and the same Geneva statement,” Lavrov said.
On April 17 in Geneva, diplomats from Russia, the United States, Europe and Ukraine agreed a number of measures aimed at the de-escalation of tensions in Ukraine, including the disarmament of militant groups and a dialogue on constitutional reforms.
Commenting on the implementation of these agreements, Lavrov said that “nothing has failed” so far, but there were “consecutive attempts to render useless the agreements that have been reached in the past months.”
Despite Kiev’s promises to lay down arms, attacks on pro-federalization protesters continued and last Friday saw the bloodiest violence since the country’s regime change in February. The highest casualty toll was reported in the southern Ukrainian city of Odessa, where at least 46 people died and over 200 were injured.
Moscow has described Kiev’s actions as a punitive operation that is destroying any remaining hope for the implementation of the Geneva accords.
