The U.S Embassy in Kyiv has said Russia’s decision to temporarily recognize documents issued by Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine is incompatible with the Minsk process on regulating the conflict.
The embassy posted on Twitter on February 19 that the decision was “alarming and incompatible with the agreed-on goals of the Minsk peace process.”
The embassy also urged Russia and the separatists to remove heavy weaponry from the line of contact in order to ensure a sustainable cease-fire.
On February 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an order authorizing the recognition of documents issued by the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and the Luhansk People’s Republic, entities created in the areas of Ukraine controlled by Russia-back separatists.
The same day, the foreign ministers of Russia, Ukraine, Germany, and France met in Munich and agreed to a new cease-fire in eastern Ukraine to begin on February 20.