DPR and LPR support European calls for complete ceasefire

The People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk (DPR and LPR) support in full the calls of Moscow, Berlin and Paris for a new ceasefire, Natalia Nikonorova and Vladislav Deinego, the republics’ Plenipotentiary Representatives to the Contact Group seeking peace for Donbass, said in a joint statement.

«On behalf of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, we state with all responsibility that we overwhelmingly support the urgent call of political directors of the French and German Foreign Ministries for members of the Contact Group saying that the sides need to relaunch a ceasefire along the contact line without any limitations,» the statement says.

The statement says that «on December 19, 2018, at a meeting of the Contact Group and its working security subgroup Ukraine’s representatives refused to negotiate the timeframe for another ‘Christmas’ ceasefire, citing a lack of authority due to the current martial law, in spite of the agreement reached and confirmed at previous meetings.»

In the meantime, in fact they disrupted the implementation of a key provision in peace settlement, refusing to support the proposal of DPR and LPR to declare a ‘Christmas’ ceasefire on December 22 ahead of the Christmas and New Year festivities.