No agreement for UN force in eastern Ukraine

By Ayhan Simsek

BERLIN (AA) - Four-party talks between Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France on Monday failed to make any substantial progress on deploying a UN peacekeeping mission in eastern Ukraine.

Speaking at a news conference after the end of “Normandy format” negotiations in Berlin, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said they needed further talks on the issue.

“In principle, both sides are open for such a UN mission. However, their positions are still wide apart concerning the basis of the mandate and operational area of the mission,” he said.

Maas added that foreign ministers have instructed their political directors to hold further talks in the next couple of weeks with the goal of defining common parameters for a potential UN peacekeeping mission.

The "Normandy format” meeting of foreign ministers resumed on Monday after a 16-month pause, which saw an increase in fighting and casualties in the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine.

Germany’s top diplomat underlined that all sides renewed their commitment to the Minsk ceasefire agreement at the meeting, and conflict parties signaled a willingness to hold more talks on a possible exchange of prisoners.

Ukraine has been wracked by conflict in its eastern regions since March 2014 after Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

Conflict parties signed the Minsk cease-fire agreement in February 2015 with the mediation of France and Germany, but the fighting continued, claiming more than 10,000 lives so far, according to the UN.