BERLIN (Sputnik) – The Normandy Four foreign ministers support the withdrawal of less than 100 millimetre calibre arms and tanks from southeastern Ukraine (Donbas), proposed by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has announced.
"We also supported the proposals put forward within the framework of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission…regarding the fact that in addition to those types of weapons that need to be pulled out in accordance with the Minsk agreements, the question of weapons of a calibre less than 100 millimetres falling into this category is also considered," Lavrov said after the Normandy format talks in Berlin.
The Russian Foreign Minister added that the withdrawal of tanks should also be discussed and stressed that the fact that this idea is now supported by the Normandy Four is "an important achievement."
The withdrawal of heavy weaponry from the contact line between Kiev forces and Donbas independence supporters was one of the key points of the peace agreement reached after talks between Normandy format leaders in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, in February.
Along with the pullout, the deal included establishing a ceasefire, conducting an all-for-all prisoner exchange and introducing amendments to Ukraine's constitution.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko announced that Kiev had withdrawn its heavy artillery from the line of contact in eastern Ukraine at the end of March, while Donbas militias said they completed the pullout of their heavy armament on March 1.
Apart from some violations, the ceasefire, which came into force in Ukraine on February 15, has been generally holding, according to OSCE.
The foreign ministers of the Normandy Quartet have also called upon OSCE to take urgent steps to de-escalate the situation in eastern Ukraine, promising financial support to the monitors, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced.
According to Steinmeier, all participants in the talks, including Russia and Ukraine, have agreed to continue to support the OSCE monitoring mission financially in the coming weeks.
The German Foreign Minister also called upon all parties to the Ukrainian conflict and OSCE monitors to take all measures necessary to bring the ongoing clashes between Kiev forces and independence supporters in southeastern Ukraine (Donbas) to an end.
