Ukraine warns Kiev's withdrawal from Minsk agreement will have 'catastrophic results'

Andrei Ermak, Chief of Staff of the President of Ukraine. Photo: TASS

"It is wrong to say that Ukraine is unilaterally withdrawing from the Minsk Agreement. This will bring catastrophic results," Andrei Ermak affirmed, once again speaking out that the terms of the Minsk Agreement need to be reviewed.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said in an interview with The Guardian that he would spend a year achieving positive results in Donbass, and promised to withdraw from the negotiations if the Normandy Summit did not bring results.

According to the Ukrainian leader, the terms of the Minsk Agreement to resolve the conflict in Donbass will need to be changed by "opting for a different strategy". If this is not done, it will be difficult to make new progress before December this year.

The settlement of the conflict in Donbass is based on the Minsk Agreements, which include ceasefires, troop withdrawals, amnesty, resumption of economic ties, as well as constitutional reforms in Ukraine aimed at creating special decentralization of powers, especially in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.

However, Ukraine refused to comply with the political aspects of the agreement, citing national security reasons. Constitutional reforms were not implemented, the law on the special status of the region was not enacted, nor was the law on elections in Donbass adopted.