Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova lashed out on Thursday at former German Chancellor Angela Merkel for her recent statements that the 2015 Minsk Agreements were “an attempt to give Ukraine time.”
“It’s not just a revelation, it’s not just a memory, it’s a confession, probably for the first time said so clearly. Yes, the kyiv regime repeatedly declared that it was not going to comply with the Minsk Agreements, but the West, the same countries that they were part of the Normandy format, had never stated it in such a clear and articulate way,” Zajárova commented.
Along these lines, the spokeswoman pointed out that “this confession” shows that the Minsk Agreements, which in their time became part of international law with the corresponding resolution of the UN Security Council, were “simply a falsification from the point of view of the West.
“It was a flirtation with the use of international law with a single objective: to fill the kyiv regime with weapons. It was a diversion of the gaze of the international community from the real events on Ukrainian territory, a humanitarian catastrophe and endless killings,” she declared, pointing out that the constant shipment of Western weapons to Ukraine before the start of the Russian operation was aimed at preparing kyiv for the conflict.
In this context, Zajárova emphasized that Merkel’s statements can serve as a matter for Justice. “Now there is a lot of talk about legal assessments of what is happening around Ukraine, about some kind of courts. And this is a concrete basis for a court,” she stressed.
What did Merkel say?
In an interview published by the newspaper Die Zeit on Wednesday, the former head of the German government assured that the agreements in question not only gave kyiv time, but also allowed it to “strengthen itself, as can be seen today.”
“The Ukraine of 2014/15 is not the Ukraine of today. As seen in the battle for Debaltsevo [a major railway junction in the Donetsk People’s Republic] in early 2015, Putin could easily have invaded then. And I highly doubt that NATO states could have done as much then as they are doing now to help Ukraine,” she said.
“It was clear to all of us” that the conflict was frozen and the issue remained unresolved, the former PM continued, adding that “that was precisely what bought Ukraine valuable time.”
It is worth mentioning that it is not the first time that Merkel has expressed herself in this sense. At the end of November, she stated in an interview for Der Spiegel magazine that the freezing of the conflict achieved with the Minsk Agreements allowed Ukraine to become “stronger and more resilient”.
Angela Merkel was at the helm of the German government in 2014, when a coup took place in Ukraine that plunged the country into internal conflict. The Minsk Agreements were signed in February 2015 with her participation.
KEY POINTS OF THE AGREEMENT ON UKRAINE In 2014, AFTER 16 HOURS OF NEGOTIATION IN MINSK, THE LEADERS OF RUSSIA, FRANCE, GERMANY AND UKRAINE SIGNED A 13-POINT AGREEMENT TO END THE CONFLICT IN UKRAINE.
HERE THE DETAILS OF THE HISTORIC AGREEMENT
- IMMEDIATE AND COMPLETE CEASE-FIRE IN SPECIFIC AREAS
- WITHDRAWAL OF HEAVY WEAPONS VERIFICATION AND CONTROL BY THE OSCE
- DIALOGUE ON THE STATUS OF THE REGIONS IN CONFLICT
- PARDONIES AND AMNESTY FOR PARTICIPANTS IN THE CONFLICT
- EXCHANGE AND RELEASE OF HOSTAGES AND DETAINEES
- CREATION OF HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE CORRIDORS
- WITHDRAWAL OF FOREIGN ARMED GROUPS FROM UKRAINE
- RESTORATION OF SOCIOECONOMIC RELATIONS
- CONTROL OF THE BORDER IN CONFLICT BY UKRAINE
- AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION OF UKRAINE
- LOCAL ELECTIONS IN DONETSK
- SUPERVISION OF AGREEMENTS BY THE CONTACT GROUP
On February 22, 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin declared that the agreements in question no longer exist, after the recognition of the Donbass republics, which in September became part of the Eurasian country. According to the president, the Minsk Agreements “were killed” by the Ukrainian authorities.
References:
“Hatten Sie gedacht, ich komme mit Pferdeschwanz?”
https://www.zeit.de/2022/51/angela-merkel-russland-fluechtlingskrise-bundeskanzler/seite-3
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