President Petro Poroshenko on Tuesday called for deploying hundreds more international monitors in eastern Ukraine after warning of growing threats to a fragile cease-fire with pro-Russia rebels there.
Following a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Mr. Poroshenko accused the rebel groups of breaking the terms of a deal brokered by Russia that was signed a month ago in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
“The lack of steady progress in fulfilling the Minsk agreements, as well as the continuing shelling by rebels, threatens the peace plan,” he said in a statement issued by his office late Monday.
 |
| Neighbors comfort a man Tuesday in front of his house, which was damaged during recent shelling in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine. Reuters |
Ms. Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert stressed the importance of the Minsk deal as well and called on Russia to do more to “significantly increase its influence on the separatists to help stabilize the situation.”
Mr. Poroshenko also highlighted the importance of Kiev restoring control over the sections of the border with Russia now controlled by rebels. On Tuesday, he met with ambassadors from countries belonging to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which has been charged with monitoring the cease-fire in eastern Ukraine.
At present, the OSCE mission is expected to reach 300 monitors by the end of next week and go up to 500 soon after that, while the first two drones go into service Oct. 13. But Mr. Poroshenko appealed to the group to expand its mission to 1,500 people and 29 drone aircraft.
“By our calculations, only that number of OSCE monitors, with at least 29 drones, would be able to ensure objective control” of the rebel-held territory, his office quoted him as saying.Read the rest of the story HERE and follow a link to a related story below:
Germany to send troops to Ukraine
If you like what you see, please "Like" us on Facebook either here or here. Please follow us on Twitter here.
No comments:
Post a Comment