Lavrov: Ceasefire Creates Hope for Heavy Arms Pullout in Ukraine

“We discussed the tasks of settling the Ukrainian crisis in detail, and we have tied hope to the fact that a ceasefire was announced today. This is not the first announcement, but this current level was well-planned, and talks were held between representatives of the opposing sides,” Lavrov said during a joint press conference with Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders in Moscow.

The Russian foreign minister added that upon the request of Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, Russian army officers have helped establish the ceasefire, and expressed hope that "the division line agreed upon will allow for the so-called silence regime to actually be implemented and the pullout of heavy arms will begin from both sides of this line.”

The conflict in eastern Ukraine escalated in April, when Kiev launched a military operation against the region’s independence supporters. The conflicting sides agreed on a ceasefire at the September 5 meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine and drew up a memorandum specifying the implementation of the ceasefire on September 19. Both sides have subsequently accused each other of breaking the truce.