WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — On Wednesday, the Contact Group, comprising envoys from Russia, Ukraine, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, confirmed a ceasefire will come into effect along the line of conflict at midnight on December 24.
"The United States welcomes the trilateral contact group’s announcement of an agreement for a holiday ceasefire in eastern Ukraine," Kirby told reporters.
The members of the group emphasized at a meeting in Minsk the importance of ensuring peace during the upcoming Christmas and New Year holidays.
In February 2015, the two sides agreed to a ceasefire after talks brokered by the leaders of Russia, France, Germany and Ukraine – the so-called Normandy Format – in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
Both sides in the conflict, however, have consistently accused each other of violating the ceasefire terms.
