German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier
said after meeting his Russian, Ukrainian and French counterparts in Berlin on
Saturday that "significant progress" had been made towards a
resolution of the conflict between Kiev and Moscow.
Steinmeier said Ukraine and Russia were close to
striking an agreement on the withdrawal of weapons from the demarcation line
between separatists and Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine and had agreed not
to lay any more mines and to clear mines.
"We all reaffirmed that the ceasefire which
has been kept for two weeks now needs to be further consolidated and
secured," Steinmeier said in a statement.
In the past, Ukrainian and rebel forces have
blamed each other for repeated ceasefire breaches but both sides are now
broadly respecting a ceasefire that came into effect on Sept. 1, according to
international monitors from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in
Europe.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said it was
welcome that fighting had stopped in eastern Ukraine, a change in rhetoric from
his previous accusations against Ukraine for violating a ceasefire.
Steinmeier said the countries agreed in
principle that planned local elections in eastern Ukraine should be held on a
joint legal basis and under the supervision of the Organization for Security
and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
Ukraine would hold regional elections on Oct.
25. Donetsk rebels and their fellow separatists in neighboring Luhansk have
said they would hold their own votes on Oct. 18 and Nov. 1, respectively,
drawing protests from Kiev.
The foreign ministers also agreed that further
concrete steps needed to be taken urgently to ensure that there is no repeat of
last winter's humanitarian emergency this year such as by ensuring that aid agencies
are able to reach people in the conflict region and by improving water
provision.
The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and
France are due to meet in Paris in early October to discuss efforts to resolve
the Ukrainian conflict.
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