Fighting has continued in eastern Ukraine ahead of a planned Saturday night ceasefire that western leaders cautiously welcomed as a first step towards peace in the region.
After some 17 hours of talks in the Belarusian capital, Minsk, the weary leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France announced yesterday morning that they had agreed a deal for a truce and a framework for resolution of the conflict between Kiev and Moscow-backed separatists.
The deal envisages a ceasefire from midnight tomorrow, withdrawal of artillery by both sides to form a 50km “buffer zone” and constitutional reform in Ukraine to give broad powers to rebel-held areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions.
Reform of constitution
The agreement states that once Ukraine’s constitution has been overhauled and local elections held, Moscow will support Kiev’s demand to retake control of its entire border with Russia, long stretches of which are now in militant hands.
Ukraine and its western allies say Russia sends weapons, volunteer fighters and even its own regular soldiers over the border to help the separatists, in a conflict that has already killed more than 5,400 people and displaced more than one million.
As the leaders met in Minsk, Ukraine’s military said Russia had deployed dozens of tanks, other armoured vehicles and missile systems across the frontier, as battles continued to rage around the key eastern rail hub of Debaltseve.
The rebels claim it is surrounded and demand thousands of trapped Ukrainian troops surrender, disarm and leave; Kiev says its forces still hold the devastated town and will not give it up.
“Units of the army of Donetsk People’s Republic are successfully holding their positions . . . and are carrying out counter-attack operations to prevent the enemy from breaking from the encirclement,” said rebel commander Eduard Basurin.
The continuing hostilities clouded prospects for a ceasefire that German chancellor Angela Merkel said gave “a glimmer of hope, no more, no less”. “We don’t have any illusions that a lot of work is still required but there’s a real chance for things to take a turn for the better,” she said, on a day western lenders pledged €35 billion of aid to cash-strapped Kiev.
The White House called the truce deal “potentially significant”, but urged Moscow to withdraw troops and armour and give Ukraine control over its own border. “The United States is particularly concerned about the escalation of fighting today, which is inconsistent with the spirit of the accord,” a statement read.
Actions vs words
Secretary of state John Kerry said Washington would “judge the commitment of Russia and the separatists by their actions, not their words” but made clear sanctions on Moscow could be rolled back if the ceasefire held.
Russian president Vladimir Putin said the talks had not given him “the best night of my life” but he welcomed agreement “on the main issues”, even while criticising Kiev’s leaders for not talking directly to the insurgents.
The separatists seemed happiest with the deal. Donetsk rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko called it “a great victory for the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic”. The leader of Luhansk’s separatists, Igor Plotnitsky, said: “We have to give Ukraine this chance, the whole country will change . . . in a civilised way, to stop killing its own people. Ukraine will change thanks to the people of [Donetsk and Luhansk], the victory will be ours in any case.”
Dr Merkel said Mr Putin had “put pressure on the separatists so they agreed to a ceasefire” – appearing to praise the Kremlin leader but making clear his influence.
