The Ombudsman of the Donetsk People’s Republic Daria Morozova said that the meeting of the Humanitarian Subgroup at the Minsk talks on Donbass can be fruitful if not only Irina Gerashchenko but Viktor Medvedchuk will be present on the part of Kiev as well.
The next round of talks on Donbass in Minsk is scheduled for 22 August.
“I hope that this two-stage approach to negotiations will bring results, provided that the Ukrainian side will be fully represented. As a rule, if Mr Medvedchuk is not present, no decisions on the issue of prisoners of war are taken,” Morozova told RIA Novosti on Thursday.
She noted that Medvedchuk has not attended the negotiation venue for several months, and the presence of Irina Gerashchenko does not have any positive impact on the negotiations. Morozova once again stressed that the DPR is ready to fulfil all the requirements of the memorandum regarding the exchange of prisoners.
The DPR Ombudsman explained that at the following meeting of the humanitarian subgroup in Minsk issues of Kiev’s violation of human rights stipulated by international conventions, the facts of injuring civilians as a result of shelling by Ukrainian forces, economic and transport blockades and other issues related to the conflict in Donbass will be discussed.
At the end of December 2017, the first exchange of prisoners in Donbass after a break of 15 months took place. The parties to the conflict stated that the process of releasing the detained persons would continue. The second stage of the exchange of prisoners was planned for the beginning of this year.
In April 2014, the Ukrainian authorities launched a military operation against the LPR and the DPR that declared independence after a coup in Ukraine in February 2014. According to the latest UN data, more than 10,000 people became victims of the conflict. The settlement of the situation in Donbass is being discussed, including during the meetings of the Contact Group in Minsk, where three documents regulating the steps to de-escalate the conflict have been adopted since September 2014. However, even after the armistice agreements between the parties to the conflict, shooting persists.
Source: RIA Novosti
