Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said on Sunday that chances to hold negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement in the Normandy format in the near future had increased after Kiev had agreed with the so-called Steinmeier formula.
"The chances of holding a summit in the Normandy format in the relatively near future, of course, are increasing," Ushakov said on air of the Rossiya 1 broadcaster, commenting on Kiev’s approval of "the Steinmeier formula."
On 1 October, representatives of the Contact Group on Ukraine met in the Belarusian capital of Minsk and signed an agreement on a peace plan called "the Steinmeier formula."
Named after former German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who initially proposed the mechanism in 2016, "the Steinmeier formula" sees two breakaway regions in Donbass receive self-governance if monitors from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation (OSCE) report that elections there are held in accordance with OSCE standards.
The implementation of this formula was previously stalled by Kiev under the nation's previous leadership. The situation is now expected to be discussed within the Normandy Four format