Second Minsk Agreement

In early September 2014, the Minsk Protocol was signed in Minsk - a document providing, in particular, for a ceasefire between the Ukrainian forces and the armed groups of the DPR and LPR in the territory of Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine.

The situation in the south-east of Ukraine, after signing the document, however, remained extremely tense. Although a relative ceasefire was established thanks to the Minsk Protocol in southeastern Ukraine, only two of its twelve points were implemented ^[8] . At the end of December 2014, the leaders of the "Norman Four" during telephone conversations agreed to make efforts to revive the Minsk agreements, but the summit of the "Norman Four" in Astana , scheduled for January 15, 2015, announced by President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, was canceled because it met in Berlin Foreign Ministers so could not overcome the differences on the key conditions for the implementation of the Minsk Agreements ^{[9] [10] [11]} . The failure of diplomatic efforts to resolve the Ukrainian crisis coincided with an unprecedented deterioration in the situation in the conflict zone. January 10-11, according to OSCE observers, the number of ceasefire violations has increased significantly. The shooting of a bus with civilians near the village of Volnovakha and the sharply intensified fighting for the Donetsk airport made the resumption of full-scale hostilities ever more real.

January 22, 2015 in Berlin, negotiations were held between the heads of the ministries of foreign affairs of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France. Upon their completion, Sergey Lavrov said that this time the ministers supported the plan for the urgent withdrawal of heavy weapons from the demarcation line recorded in the Minsk memorandum of September 19, 2014 ^[12] .

On February 5-6, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande visited Kiev and Moscow, where they discussed their proposed settlement plan ^{[13] [14]} .

On February 9, Angela Merkel visited Washington , where she held consultations on Ukraine with US President Barack Obama , including discussing the transfer of arms to Ukraine in the event of a failure in the peace talks ^[15] .

On the night of February 10, negotiations were held in Berlin, in which deputy foreign ministers of the Norman Four countries took part, after which a meeting of the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France in Minsk was announced ^[14] .

February 11, Vladimir Putin , Angela Merkel, Francois Hollande and Petro Poroshenko arrived in Minsk. At the final stage, they were joined by the special representative of the OSCE Chairman in the Contact Group for the Settlement of the Situation in Ukraine, Heidi Tagliavini . The meeting was held in the Minsk Palace of Independence . Negotiations lasted 16 hours ^[16] .

On the Russian side, the meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov , Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin , Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov , Presidential Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov ^[16] .

On February 12, the leaders of the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR arrived in Minsk - Alexander Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky ^[17] .

As a result of negotiations, the leaders of the Quartet adopted a Declaration in support of the Set of Measures for the Implementation of the Minsk Agreements adopted by the Contact Group for the Settlement of the Situation in Ukraine. A set of measures to implement the Minsk agreements provided for "an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire in certain areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine and its strict implementation" from 00:00 February 15, Kiev time , the withdrawal of heavy weapons by both sides at equal distances in order to create a security zone, as well as monitoring and verification of the OSCE ceasefire and the removal of heavy weapons using all the necessary technical systems, including satellites, UAVs and radar systems ^[17] .

The new agreement was signed by representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE ^[17] , as well as Alexander Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky, without indicating their position and status ^{[17] [18]} .

The agreement provided for:

1. An immediate and comprehensive ceasefire from 00:00 (Kiev time) February 15, 2015.

2. The withdrawal of all heavy weapons by both sides at equal distances in order to create a security zone at least 50 km wide for artillery systems with a caliber of 100 mm or more, a security zone 70 km wide for MLRS and 140 km wide for Tornado-S MLRS , "Hurricane", "Tornado" and tactical missile systems "Point" ("Point U"):

• for Ukrainian troops - from the actual line of contact;
• for armed groups of “certain regions of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine (ORDLO)” - from the contact line according to the Minsk memorandum of September 19, 2014.

The withdrawal of heavy weapons was to begin no later than the second day after the ceasefire and be completed within 14 days.

3. Monitoring and verification of the ceasefire and the removal of heavy weapons by the OSCE using technical means.

4. Beginning of a dialogue on the modalities of local elections in accordance with Ukrainian legislation and the Law of Ukraine “On the provisional order of local self-government in certain regions of Donetsk and Lugansk regions”, as well as on the future regime of these regions on the basis of this law. The adoption by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine of a resolution indicating the territory to which the special regime applies, in accordance with this law on the basis of the line established in the Minsk Memorandum of September 19, 2014.

5. Adoption and enactment of a law prohibiting the prosecution and punishment of persons involved in the conflict.

6. The release and exchange of all hostages and illegally detained persons on the basis of the principle of “all for all”.

7. Ensuring the safe access, delivery, storage and distribution of humanitarian assistance to those in need through an international mechanism.

8. The restoration of socio-economic relations with the territories, including the payment of pensions and other payments to the population, the resumption of taxation in the framework of the legal field of Ukraine.

9. The restoration of full control over the state border by the government of Ukraine in the entire conflict zone, which was supposed to begin on the first day after local elections and end after a comprehensive political settlement (local elections in certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions on the basis of the Law of Ukraine and constitutional reform ) by the end of 2015, subject to paragraph 11.

10. The withdrawal of all foreign armed groups, military equipment, as well as mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine under the supervision of the OSCE. Disarm all illegal groups.

11. Carrying out constitutional reform in Ukraine and the entry into force of a new Constitution by the end of 2015, which implies decentralization as a key element (taking into account the particularities of certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions, agreed with representatives of these areas), as well as the adoption of a permanent legislation on the special status of certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions ^{[note 1]} .

12. Coordination of issues related to local elections with representatives of certain regions of Donetsk and Lugansk regions within the framework of the tripartite Contact Group. Conducting elections monitored by the OSCE / ODIHR.

13. Revitalization of the tripartite Contact Group, including through the creation of working groups to implement the relevant aspects of the Minsk Agreements.

Signatories

The document, agreed by the leaders of the "Norman Four", was signed ^{[17] [19]} :

• members of the tripartite Contact Group:
  •   Russia : Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov
  •   OSCE : Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini
  •   Ukraine : ex-president of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma
• leaders of self-proclaimed republics (without indicating posts):
  •   Alexander Zakharchenko
  •   Igor Plotnitsky .

The signing of the Agreements aroused the approval of the international community. On February 17, 2015, the UN Security Council adopted a resolution in support of the agreements ^[20] .

Over the next years, the leaders and foreign ministers of the Norman Four countries have repeatedly emphasized that there is no alternative to the Minsk agreements.

Ukrainian politician Yuriy Boyko noted in March 2019: “Before signing, until February 15, 2015, hundreds of people were killed every day. And when they signed, at least the massacres ceased. And it became clear that there was some political path. There is some way out of this ” ^[21] .

According to the report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, prepared on the basis of the work of the UN monitoring mission, from April 14, 2014 to February 15, 2019, at least 3,023 civilians were killed in Donbass, and taking into account the crash of the Malaysian Airlines flight МН17 »The total number of civilian deaths due to the conflict is at least 3,321. The number of injured civilians is estimated to exceed 7 thousand. The first 10 months of the conflict (from mid-April 2014 to mid-February 2015) accounted for 81.9% of all civilian deaths (2 713), and four years after the adoption of the package of measures to implement the Minsk agreements - 18.1% ( 608 dead) ^[22] .

OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine

The decision to host the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in Ukraine was made on March 21, 2014 at the plenary meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council ^[23] . According to this decision, up to 100 observers were deployed in Kherson, Odessa, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkov, Donetsk, Dnepropetrovsk, Chernivtsi, Lugansk. The headquarters of the SMM was located in Kiev. After the signing of the Minsk agreements, the mission was entrusted with the functions of monitoring the activity of the parties and the location of weapons. The mission regularly publishes reports on its activities ^{[2] [24]} .

Since 2014, the OSCE SMM has been led by Erturul Apakan. From June 1, 2019, the mission will be led by the representative of Turkey, Ambassador Yashar H. Chevik ^[25] .

Ukraine Contact Group

On June 23, 2014 in Minsk, amid intense fighting unfolding in eastern Ukraine, negotiations began to resolve the conflict. The negotiations were organized within the framework of the Contact Group for the Settlement of the Situation in Ukraine, which included representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE. Representatives of the DNI and LC take part in the work of the Contact Group. The Ukrainian authorities, however, do not recognize them as a party to the negotiations and call the Contact Group exclusively “tripartite” (TKG). Russian diplomats, in turn, avoid the word “trilateral”, considering the DPR and LPR as full-fledged members of the Contact Group ^[26] . Russia in Minsk was represented by the Russian ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov , recalled to Moscow on February 23 after the removal of President Viktor Yanukovych from power and returned to Kiev on June 7 ^[27] .

Initially, the Contact Group also included former President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma and Heidi Tagliavini (Special Representative of the OSCE Chairman). On September 5, 2014, following the results of the Contact Group negotiations, the Minsk Protocol was signed, on February 12, 2015 - a Set of measures to implement the Minsk agreements , agreed upon by the heads of state of the “ Norman Four ” (Germany, France, Russia, Ukraine).

On April 27, 2015, by order of President Vladimir Putin, the special representative of Russia in the Contact Group was a personnel diplomat, former Russian ambassador to Syria, Azamat Kulmukhametov . In the summer of 2015, Tagliavini was replaced by Austrian diplomat Martin Saidik . On December 26, 2015, President Putin signed a decree appointing Boris Gryzlov, member of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, as Russia's plenipotentiary in the Contact Group (Azamat Kulmukhametov continued to work in the Contact Group as the Russian special representative ^{[28] [29]} ).

On October 2, 2018, Leonid Kuchma completed his work as the plenipotentiary representative of Ukraine in the Contact Group. On October 16, Ukraine at the next meeting of the Contact Group was represented by the diplomat and adviser to the President Poroshenko Ruslan Demchenko. On November 22, President Poroshenko appointed Kiev’s plenipotentiary representative in the Contact Group, Yevgeny Marchuk , who previously held the posts of Prime Minister, head of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Minister of Defense of Ukraine. Marchuk previously worked in the security subgroup ^[30] .

On June 3, 2019, the elected President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky again appointed Leonid Kuchma as the representative of Ukraine in the Tripartite Contact Group ^[31] .

2015

The ceasefire and the withdrawal of heavy weapons

The stumbling block was the situation around Debaltsev , where at the time of signing the agreements remained a large group of Ukrainian troops ^[32] . According to the Minsk agreements, the parties were supposed to withdraw heavy weapons from the existing line of contact, but at the same time, both sides of the conflict had their own vision about Debaltsev : the DPR and LPR considered Debaltseve as their internal territory, surrounded by Ukrainian troops, while while the Ukrainian authorities insisted on the unconditional implementation of the first paragraph of the ceasefire agreements, arguing that the troops were not surrounded and completely controlled the territory ^[33] .

Despite the announced ceasefire on February 15, serious clashes continued in the areas of Debaltsev and the village of Shirokino. The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) recorded violations of ceasefire agreements also in Severodonetsk , Lugansk and Donetsk ^[34] . Both parties in this regard did not proceed with the withdrawal of heavy weapons, although the Agreement provided for a withdrawal two days after the ceasefire (that is, February 17) and its completion within two weeks ^{[35] [36]} .

PACE President Anne Brasser and EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy Federica Mogherini condemned the active hostilities of the DPR armed forces in Debaltseve; the latter also called for immediate access to representatives of the OSCE SMM to assess the situation in Debaltseve and surrounding areas ^{[37] [38]} .

On February 18, the OSCE SMM noted that the Ukrainian army was ready to abide by the agreed ceasefire, while the DNI and LNR formations refused to do so. The OSCE also accused the DPR and LPR of restricting the freedom of movement of SMM members in the conflict zone ^{[39] [40] [41]} .

The relative ceasefire came closer to the end of February (at the same time, shootings were constantly recorded in the vicinity of the village of Shirokino, Donetsk airport, Gorlovka), but the withdrawal of heavy equipment was delayed, and although the OSCE recorded the withdrawal of part of the equipment by both sides, it could not always verify the fact that the equipment is allotted to the proper sites ^[42] .

Only on February 21 , after the end of the fighting in the Debaltsev region and the withdrawal of Ukrainian units from there, the authorities of the DPR and LPR signed a plan for the withdrawal of heavy weapons ^[43] and on 24 February began it ^[44] . On February 26, the Ukrainian side also began the withdrawal of heavy weapons ^{[45] [46]} .

On March 1, the DPR and LPR announced the completion of the removal of heavy weapons under the supervision of OSCE representatives ^[47] .

On March 9, at a briefing, the official representative of the ATO, Andrey Lysenko, said that Ukraine could not completely “bare the front line” in the Donbass within the framework of the arms withdrawal agreed in Minsk, since they did not have confirmation of the withdrawal of equipment from the rebels ^[48] .

On April 9, the OSCE SMM representative Michael Botsyurkiv raised the issue of the need to demilitarize Shirokino (Mariupol direction). On April 15, a similar proposal was made by a negotiation group led by ex-president Leonid Kuchma.

On May 6, the working group for the security of the Contact Group on Ukraine, working on the ceasefire and the removal of heavy weapons from the contact line , started working.

On May 13, the Deputy Chairman of the OSCE SMM, Alexander Hug, noted the non-compliance of the Agreement by both parties ^{[49] [50] [51]} .

After the signing of the Minsk Agreements in the DPR and LPR, the process of disarmament and the entry of scattered battalions into regular squads under a single command began. On the Ukrainian side, the integration of volunteer battalions into the regular units began. Poroshenko continued to accuse Russia of having up to 9,000 Russian military personnel in Ukraine. Russia denied this, in response indicating that foreigners are fighting on the side of the Ukrainian authorities ^[42] .

On June 3, hostilities resumed along the demarcation line in the Donetsk region. Armed clashes occurred in the area of ​​Maryinka, Krasnogorovka, Artyomovsk and Dzerzhinsk. The fighting in Maryinka was the largest violation of the agreements reached in February ^{[52] [53] [54] [55]} . A few hours before the clash in Marinka, OSCE observers noted a transfer to the DPR heavy equipment contact line, and after the start of the fighting, the Ukrainian side informed the OSCE SMM that the ATO forces were deploying their weapons on the contact line to combat the “real threat” caused by the intensification of hostilities ^{[ 42]} .

Soon after, it became known that the OSCE Special Representative for Ukraine, Heidi Tagliavini, is leaving his post - according to experts, this decision was caused by the aggravation of hostilities in the Donbass and the obvious desire of both parties to resolve the conflict not by political but by military means ^[56] .

On June 16, Minsk hosted meetings of the Contact Group and specialized subgroups. The meetings were held against the background of the ongoing mutual accusations of Kiev and representatives of the DPR and LPR in the shelling and violation of the Minsk agreements ^[57] .

On July 1, the DPR authorities declared Shirokino a demilitarized zone. On July 2, the insurgents left Shirokino and retreated to the villages of Sakhanka and Bezymennoye, which are 2 km east of Shirokina. Active clashes in the village ceased.

On July 18, the DPR and LPR began to withdraw heavy weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm. On July 21, the Contact Group for Ukraine agreed on a plan for the removal of heavy weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm.

On the night of August 9-10, clashes occurred in the area of ​​Starognatovka (Mariupol direction). The parties to the conflict accused each other of violating the ceasefire.

On the evening of August 16, the Ukrainian villages of Lebedinskoye (formerly Novoazovsky District) and Sartana (Ilyichevsky District of Mariupol) were fired upon. As a result, two civilians were killed, six were injured, and about 50 houses were damaged. Representatives of the OSCE, having studied the funnels from the shells, found that the shelling was mainly from the east, from the rebels, using 122 mm or 152 mm artillery shells. The rebels, in turn, were accused of shelling the Ukrainian military.

On August 26, in the Aleksandrovka area near Maryinka, a battle was fought between the rebels and the Ukrainian military. On the same day, the Contact Group agreed on a ceasefire on September 1. September 27, the official representative of the presidential administration of Ukraine Oleksandr Motuzinyak said that the lull in the Donbass has remained for about a month.

On September 29, the Contact Group for Ukraine signed a document on the withdrawal of heavy weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm as an addition to the Set of Measures of February 12, 2015. According to the document, weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm should be withdrawn by both sides from the contact line for 15 km. On September 30, the heads of the DPR and LPR signed this agreement. On the same day, the chairman of the People’s Council of the DPR Denis Pushilin said that the signing of this agreement is actually the end of the war in the Donbass.

October 3, the formation of the LPR began to withdraw tanks from the line of contact. On October 5, the Ukrainian military began to withdraw their tanks. On October 6, the Armed Forces said that they had completed the withdrawal of tanks in the Luhansk region. On October 9, the Ukrainian military began to withdraw artillery, completing it on October 11 . On the morning of October 15, the LPR formations began to withdraw mortars, completing it on the same day. On the same day, the Armed Forces of Ukraine also began the withdrawal of mortars and on October 16 completed it. On October 17, an official representative of the DPR Ministry of Defense, Eduard Basurin, said that the DPR armed forces transferred the withdrawal of weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm from October 18 to October 21, as several violations of the ceasefire were recorded. On October 20, the Armed Forces of Ukraine began the withdrawal of weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm from the contact line in the Donetsk region. On October 21, DNR formations began to withdraw their weapons with a caliber of less than 100 mm. On the same day, the DPR diverted tanks from the front-line zone of the Novoazovsky district. On October 22, the rebels began withdrawing tanks from Gorlovka, Donetsk, and other front-line cities. On the same day, both sides of the conflict completed the withdrawal of tanks. On the morning of October 28, the formation of the DPR and the Armed Forces of Ukraine began to withdraw artillery from the contact line and finished it on the evening of the same day. On the morning of November 5, the formation of the DPR began the withdrawal of mortars and a few hours later completed it. On the same day, the Ukrainian military also began the withdrawal of mortars and on November 7 completed it.

Throughout November 2015, local fights involving small arms, as well as heavy machine guns, AGS, 82-120 mm mortars, and the use of heavy artillery on both sides took place along the entire contact line.

On December 22, the Contact Group for Ukraine agreed to declare a complete and unconditional ceasefire.

Creation of thematic (working) subgroups

The creation of working subgroups of the Contact Group for the Settlement of the Situation in Ukraine was provided for by the Set of Measures of February 12, 2015, however, this issue was resolved only in early May, after the intervention of the Heads of State of the “Norman Four” ^{[42] [58]} .

On May 6, four thematic subgroups were launched - on security, politics, economics and humanitarian issues. The security subgroup is discussing a ceasefire, the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the line of contact. The humanitarian subgroup discusses the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Donbass, rehabilitation of infrastructure and the exchange of prisoners. The economic subgroup discusses the restoration of economic ties between the Donbas and Ukraine, the lifting of the economic blockade from the Donbas, the restoration of the banking system in the DPR and LPR, as well as the resumption of the payment of salaries, pensions and social benefits by Ukraine to the DPR and LPR. The political subgroup discusses the special status of certain regions of Donbass, local elections and constitutional reform, which should lead to decentralization of power.

Decentralization of power, special status of Donbass and local elections

According to clause 11 of the agreement of February 12, 2015, the Ukrainian authorities were to carry out constitutional reform, the key element of which was to decentralize power and expand the powers of local authorities. It was supposed to introduce a special status for the so-called "separate regions of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions" (ORDLO), which are under the control of the DPR and LPR.

On March 12, the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine determined the boundaries of the territory, which was to receive special status. The NSDC refused to include Debaltseve in the ORDLO, referring to the agreements reached in Minsk, although the city itself and the surrounding territories are controlled by rebels. In the DPR, the NSDC decision was described as a violation of the Minsk agreements.

On March 17, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a new version of the law on a special procedure for local self-government in certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions. According to the new edition, all special powers of the DPR and LPR will be obtained only after the local elections, which the Ukrainian authorities intend to hold according to Ukrainian laws and international standards with the participation of all political forces of Ukraine. Representatives of the DPR and LPR opposed this law and accused Kiev of disrupting the Minsk agreements, but after consultations at the international level, the parties returned to negotiations in the format of the Contact Group ^[42] .

On April 6, the Constitutional Commission began work, which was to prepare a draft constitutional reform.

On May 6, a subgroup of the Contact Group for Political Affairs started working, within the framework of which the special status of the PRDLO, decentralization of power and local elections were discussed.

On May 13, the Plenipotentiaries of the DPR and LPR Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deynogo announced their proposals for reforming the Constitution of Ukraine, which they had sent to the Constitutional Commission of Ukraine and the Minsk Contact Group. These proposals provided for the inclusion in the Constitution of Ukraine of an additional section securing broad autonomy - the special legal status of certain regions of Donbass. The proposals concerned the creation of units of the people's militia, controlled by local authorities, the official status of the Russian language, and the introduction of a special economic regime. It was provided for the possibility of concluding a series of treaties and agreements between the central authorities of Ukraine and the Donbass, as well as the constitutional consolidation of non-aligned status of Ukraine. Deynogo noted that “the synchronization and harmonization of the constitutional reform of Ukraine, the DPR and LPR is the only possible model for the reconstruction of a single political space and the implementation of the Minsk agreements” ^[59] . Representatives of the Constitutional Commission, however, stated that no participation of representatives of the DPR and LPR in the commission's work is possible, Donbass is represented by the legitimately elected authorities in the commission, and the Constitutional Commission did not receive proposals from the DPR and LPR ^[42] .

On July 2, the head of the DPR, Alexander Zakharchenko, announced that the local elections of the heads of cities and districts provided for by the Minsk agreements would be held on October 18, 2015. Zakharchenko invited the OSCE and other international organizations to participate in their monitoring ^{[60] [61]} . On July 6, the head of the LPR, Igor Plotnitsky, announced that local elections would be held on November 1 in the LPR. President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko called these elections illegal and contrary to the Minsk agreements ^{[62] [63]} . On July 14, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a law on local elections, appointing them for October 25. The elections planned by the leadership of the DPR and LPR on October 18 were previously declared invalid.

On September 16, President Poroshenko signed a decree on the expansion of sanctions against Russia. It was stated that this decree is Kiev’s response to the actions of the Russian leadership, which, in the opinion of the Ukrainian authorities, supports the idea of ​​holding elections in the DPR and LPR: “ The leaders of the so-called DPR and LPR announced a decision that they made in coordination with the Russian Federation about conducting fake, illegal elections that do not meet the Minsk agreements. Such an adventurous, irresponsible decision requires our coordinated response to this threat created by the Minsk agreements in the form of continuing and expanding sanctions . ” The expanded sanctions list includes more than 400 people. Among them are Russian Minister of Defense Sergey Shoigu, State Duma Speaker Sergey Naryshkin, Chechen Head Ramzan Kadyrov, Children's Ombudsman Pavel Astakhov, State Duma deputy Joseph Kobzon, Just Russia leader Sergey Mironov, adviser to the Russian president Sergey Glazyev. The list also included citizens of Lithuania, Spain, Israel, the UK and other countries. The restrictions affected a number of media outlets, in particular, TASS, Channel One, NTV, Rossiya-24, RTR-Planeta and the British BBC. The expanded sanctions list of Ukraine also includes more than 90 legal entities, most of which are Russian. There, in particular, Aeroflot Airlines, Almaz-Antey Air Defense Concern, Kaspersky Lab, the largest railway operator in Russia, First Freight Company, JSC Rossiya, Rosselkhozbank and Gazprombank. Ukraine has banned flights over its territory of twenty-five Russian airlines ^{[64] [65]} .

Subsequently, the date of the local elections in the DPR and LPR was repeatedly postponed ^{[66] [67] [68] [69]} . In the end, the elections were held in November 2018 .

On July 31, the Constitutional Court of Ukraine approved the draft amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine regarding decentralization of power, but did not provide for a special status for the Ordlo. The amendments were also agreed and approved by the Constitutional Commission. On August 31, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine in the first reading adopted amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine. Until the end of the year, parliamentarians did not return to this issue ^[70] .

Issues of restoring the socio-economic ties of Donbass with Ukraine

According to the Minsk agreements of February 12, 2015, it was envisaged to restore the socio-economic relations of Donbass with Ukraine, in particular, the resumption of the payment of pensions, social benefits and salaries to the residents of the conflict zone, and the restoration of the banking system in Donbass. However, no practical steps were taken in this area ^[42] , and the economic blockade of the unrecognized republics by Ukraine only intensified.

On February 18, Ukrainian Naftogaz cut off gas supplies to the DPR and LPR, motivating its decision by the fact that certain sections of the Ukrainian gas transportation system in the Donbass were damaged during the fighting. The authorities of the people's republics called the cessation of gas supplies an intensification of the economic blockade. After that, the Russian Gazprom began supplying gas to Donetsk and Lugansk. Gazprom called these deliveries humanitarian aid.

On March 9, the DPR announced that Ukraine was strengthening the economic blockade. The speaker of the People’s Council of the DPR, Andrei Purgin, said that the Ukrainian military did not allow trucks coming from Ukraine to the DPR.

On March 13, the Security Service of Ukraine established a temporary procedure for monitoring movement along the contact line, which establishes entry into and exit from the territory not controlled by the Ukrainian authorities, subject to the presentation of a passport and a pass issued by coordination groups ^[71] .

In mid- April, experts from Germany and France visited the DPR to restore the banking system in the Donbass.

On April 19, Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk announced that Ukraine was ready to restore the work of its banks in Donetsk and Lugansk, but for this, the rebels must transfer the Russian-Ukrainian border to Ukraine and hold local elections under Ukrainian law. The head of the DPR, Alexander Zakharchenko, said that Ukraine puts forward impracticable conditions for the restoration of the banking system in the Donbass. He also said that the DPR has its own Central Bank, which pays residents of the DPR salaries, pensions and social benefits, and therefore, Ukrainian banks in the DPR are, in principle, not needed.

On May 6, the economic subgroup of the Minsk Contact Group started working. This subgroup is engaged in restoring the economic and transport ties of Ukraine with the DPR and LPR, issues related to lifting the economic blockade and restoring the payment of pensions and benefits to the DPR and LPR Ukraine.

On May 5, in Lugansk, the issuance of passports of LNR citizens began. On May 13, the head of the Lugansk Regional Military-Civil Administration, Gennady Moskal, forbade the admission to the territory controlled by the Ukrainian authorities and vice versa of persons presenting passports or other documents issued by the LPR and DPR at the checkpoints. On its official website, it was announced that such documents would be seized at roadblocks. Crossing the demarcation line in both directions is possible solely on the basis of a passport of a citizen of Ukraine ^[72] .

On May 13, the Security Service of Ukraine announced that only five transport corridors in four sectors of Starobelsk, Artyomovsk, Velikaya Novosyolka and Mariupol will operate through the contact line in Donbass: "Stakhanov - Pervomaisk - Zolotoe - Gorskoye - Lisichansk", "Gorlovka - Artyomovsk" , "Donetsk - Kurakhovo", "Donetsk - Mariupol (via Volnovakha)", "Novoazovsk - Krasnoarmeysk - Talakovka - Mariupol" ^[73] .

On June 3, the Ukrainian authorities blocked the water supply to the LPR, which forced the LPR to switch to reserve water supply. On the same day, deputies of the Verkhovna Rada proposed introducing a food blockade of the Donbass. The next day, President Poroshenko said he was ready to restore economic ties with the DPR and LPR in the event of the restoration of Ukrainian control on the state border with Russia. On June 6, the UN called on Ukraine to lift the blockade from Donbass and begin to allow humanitarian aid to go to Donetsk and Lugansk.

On June 10, Ukraine resumed water supply to the LPR.

On June 22, Ukraine completely blocked the bus connection with the DPR and LPR.

On August 17, the DPR authorities announced their intention to create a free trade zone on the border of the DPR and Russia.

On August 19, the DPR authorities said that 78% of food comes to the republic from Russia.

Since September 1, the Russian ruble has become the official currency in the LPR. According to the leadership of the LPR, the reason for this decision was the economic blockade by Ukraine.

On September 8, the DPR stopped supplying coal to Ukraine. The DNI authorities said that coal supplies would resume only after Ukraine lifted the economic blockade from the Donbass.

On October 5, the DPR resumed coal supplies to Ukraine after Ukraine weakened the economic blockade of the Donbass and resumed fuel supplies to the DPR.

On November 24, the DPR completely halted coal supplies to Ukraine due to the energy blockade of Crimea by Ukraine. On December 9, the DPR resumed coal supplies to Ukraine.

On December 23, the DPR and LPR agreed on the liquidation of customs posts between the republics from the beginning of 2016.

Humanitarian Aid and Prisoner Exchange

The Minsk agreements provided for the exchange of prisoners on the principle of "all for all." On February 21, near Lugansk, the first exchange of prisoners took place after the signing of Minsk-2. The DPR and LPR transferred 139 Ukrainian troops to Ukraine, and Ukraine transferred only 52 rebels to the unrecognized republics. After that, the exchange of prisoners was suspended.

On May 6, a subgroup of the Minsk contact group on humanitarian issues related to the exchange of prisoners, rehabilitation of infrastructure and humanitarian assistance was launched.

Russian humanitarian convoys continued to come to the territory of the DPR and LPR, while Ukrainian humanitarian aid in the DPR and LPR almost never arrived ^[42] .

On July 10, the first exchange of prisoners according to the “10 by 10” formula between the LPR and Ukraine took place since February.

On August 6, the DPR Commissioner for Human Rights, Daria Morozova, said that Ukraine had transferred six people to representatives of the DPR.

On August 26-27, between the DPR and Ukraine, an exchange of prisoners took place according to the “12 by 12” formula. On August 26, Ukraine handed over to the rebels 12 servicemen of the DPR army. The next day, the rebels were supposed to transfer 12 Ukrainian soldiers to Ukraine, but in the end 11 people were transferred, as one member of the Ukrainian army decided to remain in the DPR.

On September 8, in the neutral zone near Maryinka, an exchange of prisoners took place between Ukraine and the DPR.

By the end of the year, it was not possible to free the hostages on the basis of the principle of “all for all”. The last high-profile exchange took place in early December , when the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko pardoned Vladimir Starkov, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison, who in Ukraine was called the major of the Russian army. In exchange, a soldier of the 81st brigade, Andrei Grechanov, was taken prisoner during battles for the Donetsk airport ^[70] .

On January 13, 2016, the Contact Group for Ukraine agreed on the exchange of prisoners in the 36 to 25 format.

On February 20, there was an exchange of prisoners between Ukraine and the DPR according to the “three by six” formula.

On March 15, an exchange of six prisoners took place between the DPR and Ukraine.

Postponement of the implementation of the Minsk Agreements for 2016

On November 26, 2015, the representative of Ukraine in the Contact Group on Ukraine Leonid Kuchma said that the Minsk agreements could not be fully implemented until the end of 2015. On December 22, the Contact Group for Ukraine agreed to continue its work in 2016.

On December 30, the leaders of the “Norman Four” countries agreed on the final extension of the Minsk Agreements for 2016 ^{[29] [70]} .

2016

On January 13, the Contact Group for Ukraine supported Boris Gryzlov’s initiative for a complete ceasefire from January 14, 2016, and on January 20 agreed to mine key facilities in the Donbass until March 21.

On January 24, Prime Minister of Ukraine Arseniy Yatsenyuk announced that an all-Ukrainian referendum would be necessary on amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine ^[74] .

In February, OSCE Deputy Head Oleksandr Hug, in an interview with Ukrainian News, noted that most of the incidents involved the use of light weapons (which include grenade launchers), and in some parts of the contact line the parties to the conflict began rapprochement (which violates the Minsk agreement). He also pointed out that most violations occur in the territory that is not controlled by the government - more than 90% ^[75] .

On March 2, the Ukraine Contact Group signed a mine clearance agreement in Donbass. Until March 31, the parties to the conflict were to ensure the designation of mined areas. On the same day, the parties to the conflict agreed to completely stop the exercises with live firing on the contact line from March 4.

In early March, the situation in the Yasinovataya area worsened. Russian representatives at the Joint Center for the Control and Coordination of the Ceasefire (JCCC), and representatives of the OSCE SMM, and Russian journalists also came under fire. AFU units in a number of sections of the contact line made attempts to occupy the neutral zone in order to get closer to the positions of the DNI and LNR formations. On March 13, the territory of the Donetsk filter station came under fire from the Ukrainian security forces. On March 14, correspondents of the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, Channel One, the Chinese Xinhua News Agency and DNR journalists came under fire from the Ukrainian military in the Zaitsevo village near Gorlovka .

On March 17, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry expressed its concern about the aggravation of the situation in the Donbass. On March 21, OSCE Deputy Head Alexander Khug stated that the situation in the area of ​​the Yasinovatsky roadblock and the Donetsk filter station had stabilized.

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The meeting of the “Norman Four” at the level of the foreign ministers, which took place on May 11 in Berlin, revealed serious disagreements on a number of key issues - in particular, on the issue of local elections in the Donbass. ^[76] . Against the backdrop of the impasse with the implementation of the Minsk agreements in the summer , the situation in the conflict zone worsened ^[77] .

July 28, Mikhail Zurabov was relieved of his duties as ambassador of Russia to Ukraine ^[78] .

In August, there was a sharp aggravation of relations between Russia and Ukraine, connected with the detention in the territory of Crimea of ​​two groups of saboteurs, who, according to their testimony, were given the task of conducting a series of explosions at tourist facilities of the peninsula; During the operation to arrest two Russian soldiers were killed. According to the FSB, after the detention of saboteurs in the Crimea, an agent network of the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine was discovered ^[79] . The incidents gave rise to super-harsh statements on both sides. On August 11, at a meeting of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, “additional measures to ensure the safety of citizens and vital infrastructure facilities of the Crimea” were discussed, and “scenarios of anti-terrorism security measures on the land border, in the sea and in the airspace of Crimea” were examined in detail. The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement in which it warned the Ukrainian leadership that “the damage caused to the Russian side, the death of Russian troops will not remain without consequences” ^[80] . Vladimir Putin said that until the “refusal of the policy of terror and provocation” by the Ukrainian leadership, it makes no sense to hold meetings in the “Norman format” (the next such meeting was planned to be held in September on the sidelines of the G20 summit in China) ^{[81] [82]} .

In turn, President Poroshenko called the charge of organizing terrorist acts in Crimea by Ukrainian citizens a provocation. Poroshenko instructed the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry to organize telephone conversations with Putin, the leadership of Germany and France, as well as US Vice President Joseph Biden and European Council President Donald Tusk, and ordered the extra units to be pulled to the administrative border with Crimea and the demarcation line in Donbass ^{[83] [ 84]} .

Events in Crimea were considered at an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council. The Russian leadership demanded that the West put pressure on the Ukrainian authorities. Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev announced the possibility of breaking diplomatic relations with Ukraine. The West, however, refused to recognize Russia as a victim of Ukrainian sabotage in the Crimea. The prevailing tone of statements by the leaders of the United States, the European Union and the West as a whole boiled down to the fact that both parties should avoid further escalation and not interrupt work on the implementation of the Minsk agreements on the Donbass ^[77] .

On August 22, the Prosecutor General of Ukraine Yuriy Lutsenko announced that the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine began criminal proceedings against a group of Russian citizens for “committing particularly serious crimes against the foundations of national security of Ukraine, public security, peace and the international law and order”. Among the suspects are Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation Sergey Glazyev, former Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Crimean Federal District Oleg Belaventsev, former State Duma deputy Konstantin Zatulin, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu and two of his deputies and ten generals from among the top command staff of the Russian Armed Forces. The Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine claims that the actions of the suspects “led to the death of at least 2,263 and the injury of at least 8,394 military forces of Ukraine and other military units, as well as material losses in the form of destruction of military equipment, weapons and other military equipment in the amount of 1, 3 trillion hryvnias ” ^[85] .

On August 24, it became known that the Investigative Committee of Russia (TFR) opened a criminal case against the leadership of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, which is suspected in absentia of conducting prohibited methods of war after the armistice in the Donbass. The suspects in the case are the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Stepan Poltorak , chief of the General Staff Viktor Muzhenko , former commander of the Armed Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Anatoly Pushnyakov , acting commander of the Armed Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Serhiy Popko , as well as the Commander of the National Guard of Ukraine Yuriy Allerov , on whose orders illegal actions were committed against civilians ^[86] .

The ICR report states: “The investigation established that the Agreement of the Tripartite Contact Group (Ukraine, Donetsk People’s Republic, Lugansk People’s Republic) on the termination of the fire regime in certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions from February 15, 2015, and the withdrawal of heavy weapons in the past period 2016 was repeatedly violated by the Ukrainian side. In particular, the military personnel of the National Guard of Ukraine and the Armed Forces of Ukraine periodically carried out targeted artillery shelling of civilian infrastructure, which are not military targets in these territories, with the use of heavy weapons with high damaging properties. As a result of artillery shelling, more than 183 objects of civilian infrastructure and livelihoods of southeastern Ukraine were partially and completely destroyed, 7 civilians were killed, 74 were injured in health of varying severity, including 7 minors ” ^[87] .

The criminal case is being investigated by a specialized department for the investigation of crimes of an international nature against civilians committed in Ukraine, created as part of the TFR. As indicated on the official website of the TFR, “the administration will operate until all Ukrainian military personnel and persons committing crimes against civilians are prosecuted. All investigative units of the Investigative Committee of Russia, in whose territory refugees from Ukraine reside ”will be involved in the work of the special department” ^[88] .

September - amid a new ceasefire agreement in the Donbass, the Ukrainian government approved a strategy to restore peace in the “temporarily occupied territories”. The priority provision of the peace plan, announced by Prime Minister Vladimir Groysman, was the implementation of a set of socio-economic measures to “support economic activity and increase living standards, restore damaged infrastructure and create conditions for social stability” ^[89] . However, the transport blockade of Donbass following this announcement, initiated by “ATO veterans” and the oligarchs behind them, led to the Groysman plan remaining a declaration ^[90] .

On September 21, a Framework Decision on the separation of forces and assets was signed. As “pilot sites” for its implementation, the Village of Lugansk , the village of Petrovskoye and the city of Zolotoye were selected ^{[Note. 1]} . On October 1, the forces were divorced in Zolotoy ^[91] , on October 5, the Contact Group agreed on a date for the separation of forces and assets in the area of ​​the village of Petrovskoye south of Donetsk ^[92] , and on October 7, the forces were divorced. However, the separation of forces scheduled for October 9 in Stanitsa Lugansk was disrupted by the Ukrainian side ^[91] and was subsequently canceled by Ukraine about 80 times ^[93] . According to Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin, the Ukrainian side is to blame for this: according to him, the Armed Forces of Ukraine not only didn’t start breeding in Stanitsa Lugansk, despite the fact that the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission has repeatedly confirmed compliance with the necessary conditions for this, but more that - they returned the equipment, arranged new positions and began to strengthen them in the settlements of Petrovskoye and Zolotoe, where breeding has already been made ^[94] . The Ministry of Defense of Ukraine accuses the rebel armed groups that shell Ukrainian positions, including from artillery and mortars, of disrupting the Framework Decision ^{[95] [96]} . In June 2018, the first deputy head of the OSCE SMM Alexander Hug, in an interview with Kommersant newspaper, noted that, in his opinion, both parties were to blame for the disruption of the agreement on the separation of forces: “There were several seven-day periods during which the SMM did not register any violations of the regime ceasefire in the area. And while the mission did not observe any signs of a withdrawal of forces and assets in this place - not one of the parties committed to do so. Until there is a separation of forces and means both in this particular area and in other places where the parties are close to each other, violations will continue. The proximity of forces and means creates high tension, which, in turn, leads to violence ” ^[97] .

October 19 in Berlin, negotiations were held in the "Norman format" to resolve the situation in Ukraine with the participation of Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko ^[98] .

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2017

On January 25, volunteer battalion veterans and activists of Ukrainian nationalist organizations launched a blockade of the railway in the Lugansk and Donetsk regions, demanding to stop trade with territories beyond the control of the Ukrainian authorities. These actions were supported and led by representatives of the parliamentary parties "Self-Help" and "Fatherland". The scale of the blockade gradually increased: on February 2, the line between Bakhmut of the Donetsk region and the DNI-controlled Gorlovka was blocked, on February 11 the Yasinovataya-Konstantinovka highway was blocked, and on February 27, the blockade participants announced that they would take control of the traffic in the Mariupol direction, setting up the first checkpoint in the area the village of Novotroitskoe ^{[99] [100]} . Already in February, as a result of the transport blockade, the supply of raw materials to metallurgical plants located in the DPR and LPR stopped.

On January 29, hostilities resumed on several sections of the contact line in the Donbass. The epicenter of the confrontation was the settlements of Avdeevka and Yasinovataya near Donetsk, as well as the village of Kominternovo in the Mariupol direction. Both sides accused each other of using heavy weapons prohibited by the Minsk agreements. On January 31, the OSCE Permanent Council met in a special meeting on the situation around Avdeevka. Ukraine initiated a discussion of the situation in the UN Security Council ^[101] . On January 31, the Ukrainian military made two attempts to break through the militia, suffering heavy losses ^{[102] [103] [104]} .

On February 1, Minsk hosted a meeting of the Contact Group for the Settlement of the Situation in the East of Ukraine, convened after a sharp aggravation of the conflict. Participants called for a “complete ceasefire" and the withdrawal of weapons from the contact line ^[105] . On February 15, a contact group in Minsk agreed to withdraw heavy weapons.

February 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree “On the recognition in the Russian Federation of documents and registration marks of vehicles issued to citizens of Ukraine and stateless persons permanently residing in the territories of certain regions of Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine”. Based on this decree, the Russian authorities “ temporarily, for the period until a political settlement of the situation in certain areas of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine on the basis of the Minsk agreements”, will recognize documents issued by bodies (organizations) actually operating in these territories, and residents of these territories will be able to enter and leave Russia without issuing visas on the basis of identity documents issued by authorities actually operating in these territories ^[106] . The West and the Ukrainian authorities regarded this decision as a confirmation of Russia's unwillingness to achieve the implementation of the Minsk agreements, a deliberate aggravation of the situation in the Donbass and the first step towards the actual recognition of the independence of the DPR and LPR ^{[107] [108]} .

On February 27, the heads of the DPR and LPR, Alexander Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky, made a joint statement in which they demanded that the Ukrainian authorities lift the blockade of Donbass before the beginning of spring - if the blockade is not lifted before March 1, the DPR and LPR will take economic measures: “ We will introduce external management at all enterprises of Ukrainian jurisdiction operating in the DPR and LPR. We will stop supplying coal to Ukraine. There is neither an opportunity nor a payment scheme for coal supplies . ” The leaders of the DPR and LPR recognized that as a result of the blockade, many enterprises had already stopped their work, and announced their intention to "rebuild all production processes and orient them to the markets of Russia and other countries" ^[99] .

On the same day, the head of the DPR, Alexander Zakharchenko, issued a decree on assigning the status of the DPR state border to the existing demarcation line in the Donbass. On March 13, the decree was published on the website of the Ministry of State Security of the DPR. The decree prohibits "the movement of individuals outside the border control points of the Border Guard Service of the DPR Ministry of State Security." When moving across the contact line, individuals are required to register at border control points. The DPR Ministry of State Security stated that henceforth all attempts to illegally cross the contact line “will qualify in accordance with the DPR Criminal Code”. Earlier, the DPR approved its own state attributes - coat of arms, flag, state awards. On March 1, it became known that criminal responsibility for distorted performance of the national anthem was introduced in the DPR ^[107] .

On March 15, Metinvest announced the loss of control over the activities of its enterprises in uncontrolled territory ^[109] .

On March 16, Poroshenko made a concession to the radicals and signed a decree that enforced the NSDC decision of March 15, 2017 “On urgent additional measures to counter hybrid threats to the national security of Ukraine”, which provided for the cessation of the movement of goods through the clash line in Donetsk and Lugansk regions “ temporarily, until the implementation of paragraphs 1 and 2 of the Minsk “Package of Measures” of February 12, 2015, as well as until the return of the seized enterprises to functioning in accordance with the laws of Ukraine. ” An exception was made only for goods of a humanitarian nature and provided by Ukrainian and international humanitarian organizations. The Ministry of Internal Affairs, the police, and the National Guard, with the participation of the SBU, were instructed to ensure the implementation of this decision by stopping the movement of goods through the collision line by rail and road, and to create conditions for involving the public in monitoring the implementation of the measures provided for by this decision ^{[110] [111]} .

NSDC Secretary Alexander Turchinov said the blockade was imposed because Russia “began to recognize documents” at the state level by the DPR and LPR, while the “separatist authorities” established their control over Ukrainian enterprises located on their territory ^[112] .

The cessation of railway communication between territories controlled by the DPR and LPR and the rest of Ukraine led to a complete halt in coal supplies. During the June visit of Poroshenko to the United States, an agreement was reached on the supply to Ukraine of 700 thousand tons of American anthracite by the end of 2017. The declared supplies from the USA through the state line make up 2% of total consumption in Ukraine ^[113] . Subsequently, Ukraine purchased anthracite (actually Donbass) from Russia and Belarus.

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June - during a visit by the President of Ukraine Poroshenko (in anticipation of a visit to the United States) of areas of Donetsk Oblast controlled by the Ukrainian authorities, the president announced the preparation of a bill to end the "anti-terrorist operation" (ATO) and "peaceful reintegration of the occupied territories of Donbass" ^[90] .

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July 18, Alexander Zakharchenko put forward the idea of ​​creating a state of Little Russia ^{[114] [115] [116] [117] [118]} , which on a federal basis, in addition to the DPR and LPR , should be included in all regions of Ukraine , with the exception of Crimea : “The situation came to a dead end. We propose a plan for the reintegration of the country ... To stop the civil war, we discussed the situation and came to the conclusion that Ukraine has shown itself to be a failed state. The Kiev regime is not able to stop the civil war ... We propose to establish the state of Little Russia - an independent young state - for a transitional period of up to three years. ” The capital was supposed to make the city of Donetsk , while Kiev would remain the historical and cultural center of Little Russia ^[119] . At the same time, the LPR declared that they were not related to this idea, which was not agreed with the LPR government ^{[120] [121]} . Later, Alexander Zakharchenko specified that he put forward his idea only as a proposal for discussion ^{[122] [123] [124] [125]} .

Following the results of Poroshenko’s trip to the USA, the Ukrainian leadership, given the fact that the process of resolving the Ukrainian crisis in the “Norman format” (Russia, Ukraine, Germany, France) on the basis of the Minsk agreements, has reached an impasse, has relied on strengthening contacts with the new American administration ^{[126 ]} . On July 7, Kurt Walker was appointed Special Representative of the US State Department for Ukraine. The first round of consultations between Kurt Walker and Russian Presidential Aide Vladislav Surkov took place on August 21 in Minsk. Over the following months, several rounds of these negotiations took place.

On September 5, at a press conference following the results of the BRICS summit in the Chinese city of Xiamen, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his new initiative: Russia proposed the establishment of a UN mission to protect the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in southeastern Ukraine in order to facilitate the strict and comprehensive implementation of the Minsk arrangements to resolve the intra-Ukrainian crisis. At the same time, peacekeepers should be on the demarcation line of the parties, and not on the territory of the DPR and LPR (later, after talking with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Putin admitted that peacekeepers can be located not only on the contact line, but also in places where monitoring OSCE Mission ^[127] ). The Russian side believes that the deployment of peacekeepers can take place "only after the separation of the parties and the withdrawal of heavy equipment." In addition, in order to deploy the UN contingent in the region, it is necessary to establish “direct contact” between the Ukrainian authorities and representatives of the DPR and LPR. Russia has submitted a draft resolution to the UN Security Council ^[128] . Later, Ukraine introduced its project. According to this project, a format of “peace enforcement operation” or “peace restoration operation” was proposed for the UN peacekeeping mission, which, from the point of view of Ukraine, should confirm the “role of Russia as an aggressor” ^[3] .

The Ukrainian leadership spoke of the need to bring peacekeepers to the Donbass at least since February 2015. On August 22, 2017, President Poroshenko announced his intention to submit this proposal to the session of the UN General Assembly. Russian officials previously opposed the involvement of peacekeepers, citing the lack of a provision in the Minsk agreements, but indicated that additional agreements could be signed if Ukraine entered into direct dialogue with the DPR and LPR ^[128] .

The discussion of the issue of a peacekeeping mission in the UN Security Council revealed significant differences in the Russian and Ukrainian approaches. President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko emphasized in his speech that a peacekeeping mission would not be effective without removing “all foreign military personnel, mercenaries, their weapons and equipment” from the region and establishing international control over the Russian-Ukrainian border. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in response accused the Ukrainian authorities of “evading” the implementation of the Minsk agreements ^[3] . Over the next few months, the format of the proposed UN peacekeeping mission in the Donbass was discussed at the talks between US and Russian special envoys Kurt Volker and Vladislav Surkov . The main difference between the positions of the United States and Russia is that Russia insists on placing peacekeepers exclusively on the demarcation line of the conflicting parties, while the United States (and Ukraine) insist that peacekeepers occupy the entire territory controlled by the DPR and LPR, which, in particular, it implies control over the Ukrainian-Russian border to prevent arms transfers to unrecognized republics ^[129] .

On October 6, the Law "On the Interim Order of Local Self-Government in Some Districts of Donetsk and Lugansk Regions", adopted in October 2014, was extended for a year. At the same time, amendments were made to the text of the law, which stipulated that the special status would come into force only from the moment Ukraine gained full control over the territories ^[130] .

On October 20, the Ukrainian side, despite calls from the LPR, unilaterally allowed several hundred people into the mined “gray zone” in the vicinity of the Zolotoye checkpoint, which was supposed to be opened on the contact line in the Luhansk region. In response to these actions, an authorized representative of the LPR at the talks in Minsk, Vladislav Deynogo, said that the LPR “suspends preparatory work” (in the Zolotoye CPVV area) and states that this point can only be opened “after the withdrawal of the Ukrainian armed forces in the area near The villages of Lugansk simultaneously with the opening of the checkpoint in Happiness "and" while providing from the international organizations a source of funding for preparatory work and the arrangement of the checkpoint in Zolotoy. " In the LPR zone of responsibility, the only officially operating checkpoint is located in the area of ​​Stanitsa Lugansk, where the contact line runs along the Seversky Donets River. Walking along the bridge over the river, which was partially destroyed as a result of undermining by Ukrainian security forces in March 2015, is carried out via temporary wooden stairs and floorings. The traffic on the bridge is impossible ^[131] .

November 15, the leader of the public movement "Ukrainian Choice - the Right of the People" Viktor Medvedchuk appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a request to assist in the exchange of prisoners between Ukraine and the unrecognized republics. Thanks to this, the coordination of the terms of exchange began to advance at an accelerated pace. In particular, Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with the heads of the DPR and LPR - Alexander Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky, who supported the proposal to expedite the exchange of prisoners ^{[132] [133]} .

On November 24, a statement by the Minister of State Security of the LPR Leonid Pasechnik on the resignation of Igor Plotnitsky was published on the Luganskinformcenter news site: “Today Igor Venediktovich Plotnitsky resigned for health reasons. Affected by numerous military injuries, the effects of shell shock. In accordance with his decision, I will take up the duties of the head of the republic until the upcoming elections ” ^[134] . Earlier, on November 23 , Igor Plotnitsky, after aggravating the conflict with the leadership of the republic’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, left Lugansk and went to Moscow for “consultations”. The People's Council of the LPR adopted a decision on the early termination of its powers ^[135] .

On December 18, the Russian Foreign Ministry commented on the decision to withdraw Russian military observers from the Joint Center for the Control and Coordination of the Ceasefire and Stabilization of the Contact Line of the Parties in the Donbass (JCCC). According to the ministry, one of the reasons for the Russian officers to stop working was the unwillingness of the Ukrainian authorities to make concessions in regulating their entry into the country: “From January 1, 2018, Kiev plans to introduce a new procedure for the entry and stay of Russian citizens on its territory, according to which they will have to give their detailed personal data to the Ukrainian authorities in advance. "This norm does not comply with the provisions of the agreement between the Government of the Russian Federation and the Government of Ukraine on visa-free travel for citizens of the Russian Federation and citizens of Ukraine of January 16, 1997 and is unacceptable for Russian military personnel." Despite the fact that Russia “insisted on the need to resolve this issue”, Ukraine refused to create special conditions for Russian officers. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, “in violation of the agreements of the presidents of the Russian Federation and Ukraine,” the Ukrainian side deliberately created “tense moral and psychological conditions” for the Russian military, “limited access to the contact line”, and “forbade communication with the local population” ^[136] .

On December 19, Russian military observers officially left the JCCC and left Ukraine.

On December 25, a meeting was held at Holy Danilov Monastery (Moscow), in which Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill, the leaders of the DPR and LPR Alexander Zakharchenko and Leonid Pasechnik, as well as Viktor Medvedchuk took part. Here, the conditions for the exchange of prisoners, which took place on December 27 on the line of demarcation between the Ukrainian army and the forces of the self-proclaimed republics of Donbass, were finally agreed. Initially, it was planned that Kiev would give Donetsk and Lugansk 306 people, Donbass to Kiev - 74. However, the actual number turned out to be less, because on both sides there were those who, for various reasons, refused to cross the line of demarcation. Ukraine transferred 238 people to the DPR and LPR, receiving 73 prisoners from them - mainly military personnel. It took more than a year to reach an agreement on the release of most of the persons held by the parties to the conflict. Having become an important step in the implementation of the Minsk agreements, the exchange of prisoners, however, did not make a fundamental difference in resolving the situation in the Donbass ^[132] - just a few days before, the US State Department confirmed the intention of the US administration to begin supplying Ukraine with lethal weapons. The US defense budget for fiscal year 2018 provides for the provision of military assistance to Ukraine for $ 350 million. The lethal weapons that Ukraine will begin to receive in 2018 will include Barrett M107A1 large-caliber sniper rifles, ammunition and spare parts, as well as modern Javelin anti-tank systems (210 anti-tank missiles and 35 units worth $ 47 million). Russia's reaction to the US decision turned out to be predictably negative: Moscow believes that the supply of American weapons encourages supporters of a military solution to the conflict and helps draw the United States into the conflict in eastern Ukraine ^[137] .

On December 29, the DPR parliament adopted amendments to the Constitution, which increased the term of office of the head of the republic and deputies to five years. Changes will take effect after the next election. Under the current Constitution, the head of the DPR and deputies were elected for four years ^[138] .

2018

During 2018, the Ukrainian leadership at all levels called for an early start of the UN peacekeeping mission in the Donbass, however, its position regarding the participation of representatives of the DPR and LPR in the discussion of this initiative and the format for its implementation remained the opposite of the Russian one: if Russia considers the participation of unrecognized republics in negotiations on the format, composition and objectives of the deployment of the UN mission in the Donbass a prerequisite for its beginning, Ukraine refuses to coordinate this issue with the DPR and LPR, since Ukraine Kie authorities "consider these occupied territories" and DNR and LNR - "gangs" ^[139] . The USA and the EU support the Ukrainian position ^[140] .

At the beginning of the year, representatives of the leadership of the DPR and LPR announced their intention to hold elections in autumn for the heads of unrecognized republics and parliaments of these entities ^{[141] [142]} .

On January 18, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted the law on the reintegration of Donbass (“On the features of state policy to ensure the state sovereignty of Ukraine over the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Lugansk regions”), which regulates relations with the DPR and LPR and the mechanism for their return to Ukraine. According to some estimates, the law in its final form actually fixed the withdrawal of the Ukrainian authorities from the Minsk agreements, which are not even mentioned in it ^[4] . Russia is called the "aggressor" in the document, and territories beyond the control of the Ukrainian government - "occupied". The return of sovereignty over the “temporarily occupied territories” is declared an unlimited priority in the politics of Ukraine. The term "anti-terrorist operation" is replaced by the concept of "measures to repel Russian aggression." In accordance with the law, the anti-terrorist operation goes into the military "Operation of the combined forces." All the forces involved in “repelling Russian aggression”, including the army, border troops, special forces of the SBU and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the National Guard, etc., are subordinate to a single body - the Joint Headquarters of the Armed Forces, led by the commander of the armed forces, which, in turn, appointed by the president of Ukraine. The president is empowered to use the army in peacetime without restrictions - as part of measures to “repel Russian aggression”. In addition to the concept of “occupied territory”, the concept of “security zones”, directly adjacent to the combat zone, is also introduced. Inside these zones, Ukrainian law enforcement agencies receive expanded powers: they can enter private dwellings at any time, search and arrest, search and requisition motor vehicles, etc. Ukraine refused direct dialogue with representatives of “certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions” ( ORDLO) stipulated by the Minsk agreements, insisting on resolving disputes exclusively with the "aggressor country", which, with the adoption of this law, is responsible for everything that happens on ntroliruemyh territories. " Instead of the amnesty provided for by the Minsk agreements, criminal liability has been introduced for “participation in the activities of the occupation administration” and “damage to Ukraine” ^{[4] [143] [144] [145]} .

On February 2, Permanent Representative of Russia to the OSCE, Alexander Lukashevich, at a meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council, said that in order to return the Russian military to the JCC, it is necessary to coordinate and approve the rules of his work, fixing the legal status of employees: “They should be provided with normal working conditions, no worse than observers Special Monitoring Mission (SMM). A normal procedure for their entry / exit to Ukraine should be provided. Naturally, there can be no talk of the work of the Russian military in Ukraine as representatives of the “aggressor country” ” ^[146] .

February 20, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko signed the law "On the features of state policy to ensure state sovereignty of Ukraine over the temporarily occupied territories in Donetsk and Lugansk regions" ^[5] .

On March 16, Poroshenko announced the completion of the so-called. "Anti-terrorist operation (ATO)" in the Donbass and its replacement with "Operation of the combined forces (OOS)" ^[147] .

On March 29, leaders of the “Normandy format” countries adopted a joint statement in which they reaffirmed “their commitment to the implementation of the Minsk agreements in all aspects (security, political, humanitarian and economic issues)” and announced their intention to consider “possible ways to accelerate the implementation of agreements in the coming months " ^[148] .

On April 11, the Investigative Committee of Russia opened a case regarding the shelling of a checkpoint near the village of Elenovka on April 7, 2018. According to investigators, aimed fire from automatic weapons was carried out by Ukrainian troops. As stated in a statement on the TFR website, “as a result of the crime, a non-participating civilian born in 1963 was injured. The data obtained by the investigation indicate that the Ukrainian military acted intentionally with the aim of killing the civilian population. ” A criminal case was instituted on the grounds of a crime under Part 1 of Art. 356 of the Criminal Code (the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare) ^[149] .

On April 13, the Investigative Committee of Russia opened a new case under part 1 of art. 356 of the Criminal Code against the Ukrainian military. According to investigators, on April 11 they fired at Donetsk, destroying at least 12 buildings and injuring three people ^[150] .

According to the Russian side, after the so-called anti-terrorist operation in Donbass was reformatted as a combined operation on April 30 , the situation escalated noticeably along almost the entire line of contact. The transfer of the general command of the power operation in the Donbass from law enforcement agencies to the armed forces actually gave a signal to the implementation of the military scenario by Ukraine. The number of ceasefire violations, shelling of settlements, civilian casualties and the destruction of civilian infrastructure increased sharply. Using tactics of "creeping offensive", APU advance in the "gray" zones. The Russian side pointed to a dangerous escalation of tension, threatening to lead to the resumption of large-scale hostilities ^[151] .

The first open meeting of the UN Security Council on the situation in eastern Ukraine was held in New York on May 29 in February 2017. The head of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission, Ertugrul Apakan, in his report said that the ceasefire regime in the region does not work: according to the organization’s statistics, only since the beginning of 2018 it has been violated 100 thousand times, 107 civilians have died. In recent months, daily shelling has become more frequent, and because of them, the civilian infrastructure of the region continues to collapse. Ursula Muller, UN Assistant Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs, complained about the lack of funds for humanitarian aid to residents of eastern Ukraine. United States Permanent Representative to the UN Nikki Haley once again blamed Russia for continuing the conflict, stressing that the "key to resolving the Ukrainian crisis" is in Moscow’s hands, the conflict can only be completed after Russian arms are withdrawn from the country and after Crimea returns to Ukraine ^{[152 ]} .

On June 1, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin said in an interview with RBC that Russia was ready to consider the possibility of returning its military to the Joint Center for Control and Coordination (CCCC), “but under certain conditions: legislative consolidation in Ukraine of their legal status and security guarantees, approval in the Contact Group of the provision on the JCCC (regulation), withdrawal by the Ukrainian side of the requirement for the transfer by the Russian military of their biometric and personal data when crossing the border. It is also necessary to see the return to the SCCC of representatives of the republics of Donbass who have already taken part in its work earlier ” ^[151] .

On June 6, a statement was published on the UN Security Council website in which the UN Security Council expressed deep concern about the escalation in eastern Ukraine and its impact on civilians. The Council condemned the ceasefire violations, the use of heavy weapons, called for the implementation of the Minsk agreements, and expressed support for the sovereignty and independence of Ukraine ^[153] .

On June 7, during a direct line of President Putin, Russian writer Zakhar Prilepin, who left to fight on the side of the DPR, suggested that Ukraine could resume active hostilities in the Donbass during the World Cup. “I hope that things will not come to such provocations, and if this happens, I think that this will have very serious consequences for the Ukrainian statehood as a whole,” Putin replied. He expressed the opinion that the existing Ukrainian authorities are not able to solve the problem of Donbass, as they are already drawn into the election cycle, which will end only in the fall of 2019 with elections to the Verkhovna Rada. Up to this point, the chances of agreeing with the Ukrainian leadership on the status of Donbass are minimal. Putin is convinced that the Ukrainian authorities are not interested in the fact that residents of Donbass could participate in parliamentary and presidential elections ^{[154] [155]} .

On June 9, the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko, held a telephone conversation during which they reached an important agreement on the issue of the exchange of prisoners: human rights ombudsmen from the two countries will be able to visit compatriots who are in prisons abroad ^{[156] ]} .

The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement accusing Ukraine of reluctance to implement the Minsk agreements on the Donbass: “Recent events show that the Kiev authorities do not intend to implement the Minsk agreements, rudely distort their logic and consistency, artificially link their willingness to advance on the political track with a full military surrender of Donbass, control of the border with Russia. At the same time, the Ukrainian side does not offer residents of the southeast any political guarantees, in every possible way provoking tension on the contact line, takes every opportunity to tighten the economic, trade and transport blockade of the region ” ^[157] .

On June 13, Russian envoy to the Contact Group, Boris Gryzlov, said the Russian side insisted on returning Russian citizens to the list for the exchange of prisoners of war who were unilaterally excluded from them by Ukraine during the previous exchange in December 2017. On December 27, 2017, Ukraine transferred 233 prisoners to the proclaimed republics of Donbass and received 73 people, however, the number of persons released by Ukraine turned out to be less than previously agreed. In particular, all citizens of Russia who were detained during the conflict in the east of the country were excluded from the lists. Later in Kiev they began to declare that Russian citizens (according to Kiev, among those detained there are 23 people) cannot be exchanged in the framework of the Minsk process. Instead, Ukraine proposes to exchange them for Ukrainian citizens who have been convicted and are serving sentences in Russia ^[158] . On July 2, Verkhovna Rada Deputy Speaker Irina Gerashchenko named the names of Russian citizens convicted in Ukraine, whom Ukraine is willing to exchange for Ukrainian prisoners in Russia. It, she said, is about Russian citizens convicted of preparing terrorist acts or participating in hostilities in the Donbass ^{[159] [160]} .

On June 18, the Investigative Committee of Russia opened several criminal cases under part 1 of art. 356 of the Criminal Code (the use of prohibited means and methods of warfare) against the Ukrainian military. According to the TFR, on June 7 and 8, the military fired at civilian infrastructure in the village of Sakhanka, Novoazovsky district, Donetsk region. On June 8, the Zaitsevo village of the city of Gorlovka was also fired, on June 9 - the village of Vasilyevka, on June 11 - the Kuibyshevsky district of Donetsk. In addition, on June 12, the Ukrainian military fired at civilian targets in the city of Dokuchaevsk, and on June 13 - similar targets in the urban-type settlement of Aleksandrovka. As a result of the shelling, 10 civilians were wounded, houses were destroyed, the building of the Gorvodokanal in Dokuchaevsk was damaged ^[161] .

On June 26, the Investigative Committee of Russia opened four criminal cases under part 1 of art. 356 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation against the Ukrainian military. According to the TFR, from June 20 to 24, "so far, unidentified servicemen of the Armed Forces and the National Guard of Ukraine" have fired heavy weapons from civilian infrastructure. On June 20 the western part of the city of Gorlovka was bombarded, on June 21 the village of Kominternovo, on June 23 the city ​​of Dokuchaevsk, on June 24 the village of Sakhanka. As a result, four civilians were injured ^[162] .

On July 9, President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, following talks with European Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, said that, in his opinion, “the only way to change the situation is to seal the uncontrolled part of the Ukrainian-Russian border with the aggressor state and ensure that Minsk agreements ” ^[163] .

On July 17, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, speaking at the Territory of Meanings on Klyazma All-Russian Youth Educational Forum, said that holding a new summit in the Norman format would not be feasible until the agreement on the reintroduction of forces in the Donbass was completed: “So far, the specific agreement of the top officials of the Norman four states about three specific settlements will not be fulfilled, I believe that holding the next summit will not be very good for the reputation of the Norman format ” ^[164] .

On August 17, the Investigative Committee of Russia opened two more criminal cases because of shelling of civilians in the Donbass. They are associated with shelling in Gorlovka on August 5 and in the village of Kominternovo on August 14 ^[165] .

On August 20, several media outlets reported on the possible postponement of the elections of the heads and deputies of the DPR and LPR, previously planned for the end of autumn. The reasons for this decision were the lack of funding, the lack of the need for re-election of deputies and leaders of the republics, as well as the risks for the Minsk talks and the possibility of introducing new sanctions. According to available information, the decision to postpone the election was agreed with the Russian authorities ^{[166] [167] [168]} .

On August 31, the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Alexander Zakharchenko, died as a result of the attack. The reaction of the Russian authorities was harsh and quick. President Putin sent a telegram in which he described the incident as “another testimony: those who choose the path of terror, violence, intimidation do not want to seek a peaceful, political solution to the conflict, do not want to have a real dialogue with the residents of the southeast, but make a dangerous bet to destabilize the situation, to bring the people of Donbass to their knees. "

In Kiev, the accusations were rejected, suggesting that the death of Alexander Zakharchenko was the result of an internal conflict in the DPR ^{[169] [170] [171]} . The head of the SBU, Vasily Gritsak, said that it was a "methodical cleansing of all those who in 2014 contributed to the introduction of Russian troops in the Donbass, who contributed to the creation of pseudo-national republics" ^[172] . The deputy chairman of the Council of Ministers Dmitry Trapeznikov became the interim head of the DPR, but after the Prosecutor General's Office declared his appointment illegal, the DPR People’s Council appointed a new acting speaker of the parliament and representative of the republic in the Contact Group Denis Pushilin . In addition, the People’s Council resolved the issue of early elections. Both in the DPR and in the neighboring Lugansk People’s Republic, they were appointed on November 11 ^[173] . It was suggested that the decision to hold elections in the self-proclaimed republics was made in Moscow and that Pushilin’s candidacy was supported by the team of Vyacheslav Surkov, President’s Special Representative for Donbass ^{[174] [175]} . Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said that Ukraine does not recognize the election. Former President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma, speaking at a meeting of the Contact Group, said: “This decision is completely contrary to the Minsk agreements. This is a very serious step that can put an end to the Minsk process ” ^[176] . Describing the election as “fake”, he said that the election did not correspond to the interests of any of the participants in the Minsk process ^[177]

The European External Relations Service said: “The European Union fully supports the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In this regard, the statement on the holding of the so-called “elections” in the so-called “Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics” on November 11, 2018 is contrary to the spirit and letter of the Minsk agreements, which have special provisions on the organization of local elections in this region. ” The “Set of Measures to Implement the Minsk Agreements” does state that the elections should be held “in accordance with Ukrainian law and the law of Ukraine“ On the provisional order of local self-government in certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions ”, as well as under the supervision of the Bureau for Democratic Institutions and human rights of the OSCE. However, since August 2015, the development of amendments to the constitution of Ukraine, which are required by the Minsk agreements, has not budged. The procedure for holding elections in territories beyond the control of the Ukrainian authorities has not been approved ^[176] .

Ten people nominated for the post of head of the DPR. The commander of the Vostok brigade, Alexander Khodakovsky, who was considered one of the most dangerous competitors of the DPR leadership, headed by Denis Pushilin, on the day that the filing of documents began with the CEC, the Russian border guards did not let into the republic, where he wanted to get from the Rostov region. The most famous candidates from those who were able to submit documents to the CEC of the DPR were Pavel Gubarev , who was elected the "people's governor" of the Donetsk region in the wake of the first protests in the spring of 2014, and the first Minister of Defense of the DPR Igor Khakimzyanov. Former commander of the DPR armed forces Igor Strelkov from his pages on social networks urged DPR residents to vote and vote for any candidate except Denis Pushilin ^{[178] [179]} .

The election campaign was accompanied by a number of incidents. So, on September 29, at a congress of the DPR Communist Party in Donetsk, an explosion-free device exploded, which injured four people, including Igor Khakimzyanov, who then withdrew his candidacy from the election. On the same day, in Donetsk, Pavel Gubarev’s wife disappeared, who was supposed to participate in the congress of the Free Donbass public movement, which nominated Gubarev as a candidate for the election of the head of the DPR (according to rumors, she was detained by local special services) ^[180] . The congress did not take place ^[181] . The final list of candidates for the post of head of the DPR included, in addition to Denis Pushilin, four little-known politicians. Registration was denied to Pavel Gubarev “due to the inaccuracy of the signatures of the inhabitants of the DPR in the signature lists submitted to the CEC”. According to Igor Strelkov, the removal from the elections of Gubarev, who "really could have made real competition" to the DPR authorities, means that Presidential Aide " Vladislav Surkov is still omnipotent in the DPR". From the very beginning, in the LPR, among the eight candidates who applied, there was not a single well-known politician, except for the acting head of the republic Leonid Pasechnik. The LNR CEC reduced this list to four people ^[182] .

On October 2, the former President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma completed his work as the plenipotentiary representative of Ukraine in the Trilateral Contact Group for the Settlement of the Conflict in the Donbass.

As the Russian plenipotentiary representative in the Contact Group Boris Gryzlov told reporters, the group’s members agreed on the next date for the separation of forces in the area of ​​Stanitsa Lugansk - October 5. “Unfortunately, the Ukrainian side did not agree with the proposal, supported by the OSCE, Russia, the DPR and the LPR, to ban shelling of civilian objects and to ban reconnaissance and sabotage activities in the territories of the parties to the conflict,” Gryzlov added. Previously, the withdrawal of forces at the Village of Lugansk more than 70 times failed ^[183] .

The OSCE SMM in its report over the past week reported that its UAV on September 28 recorded three Ukrainian Buk anti-aircraft missile systems (9K37) at a railway station in Rubezhnoye, 84 km north-west of Lugansk. On the same day, two 9K33 Osa air defense systems were recorded in the village of Kalinovo, 35 km north of Donetsk. These complexes were located behind the withdrawal lines, but outside the designated weapons storage sites. September 29 , according to the OSCE, one Buk was still at the railway station. Later, the OSCE recorded one more - on a platform truck near the station ^[184] .

On October 4, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine extended the law on the provision of special self-government status to certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions until December 31, 2019. According to this law, a special procedure for local self-government will come into force after the withdrawal of all illegal armed groups and military equipment. President Poroshenko introduced the bill in the Verkhovna Rada marked "urgently." He noted that if the law is not extended, it will “give Moscow the opportunity to accuse Ukraine of non-compliance with the Minsk agreements and thereby achieve the weakening of sanctions” ^[185] .

On October 12, President Poroshenko at a meeting with brigades commanders of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the National Guard and the State Border Service during a visit to the Clean Sky exercises in the Khmelnitsky region ordered the leaders of the Operation of the Joint Forces in the Donbas to use all available military equipment to save the lives of Ukrainian troops forces and means at their disposal: “One must be prepared for any scenarios - both for defense and an effective counterattack <...>. I authorize and order to use all the forces and means at your disposal as a return fire to save the lives of our people ” ^[186] . As President Putin’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov told reporters, this order runs counter to the Minsk agreements regarding the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the contact line: “Naturally, such steps only lead to further escalation of tension in the contact zone” ^[187] .

On October 18, Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club, commenting on the situation in the Donbass, said that he considered the organization by the Ukrainian special services “of terrorist acts and killings of people who were chosen by the population to lead these regions” the worst “way to establish relations with these territories ” ^[188] .

On November 9, the prosecutor's office of a part of the Donetsk region controlled by the Ukrainian authorities opened a criminal case in connection with the organization in the DPR and LPR of the election of the heads and deputies of the People’s Councils “on the grounds of a crime under Art. 110 “Violation of the territorial integrity and inviolability of Ukraine” ”. The prosecutor’s office said that the organization and conduct of the election campaign were “representatives of the authorities of the Russian Federation who intend to strengthen their control over the occupied territories through the legalization of representatives of the occupation administration” ^[189] .

On November 10, the European Union declared its non-recognition of the results of elections in the DPR and LPR. “The EU condemns these“ elections ”because they violate international law, undermine the commitments made under the Minsk agreements, and violate the sovereignty and law of Ukraine,” said EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini in a statement ^[190] .

On November 11, the elections of the heads and deputies of the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics were held in the Donbass. As expected, the leaders of the DPR and LPR won Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik . In the parliamentary elections, people voted for the pro-government organizations Donetsk Republic and Mir Luhansk. In Russia, the November 11 election was called a necessary step, in the West they were condemned, calling the vote a threat to the peace process. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the elections in the DPR and LPR "a blow to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine." The US State Department emphasized that the elections contradict the Minsk agreements. “The United States will continue to impose sanctions on Ukraine against Russia until Moscow fully complies with the Minsk Agreement and regains control of Crimea in Ukraine,” said Heather Nauert, head of the agency’s press service. Representatives of Ukraine in the Minsk contact group demanded its "immediate extraordinary convocation" in order to "conduct special consultations demanding the Russian Federation to abandon the devastating scenarios of destabilizing the situation in the Donbass." Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin said that Ukraine intends to use new sanctions against Russia for its assistance in the conduct of elections. As everyone recognizes, the settlement in the Donbass has actually reached an impasse, but the parties blame each other for this. At the same time, the Ukrainian leadership continues to demand the introduction of UN peacekeepers into the region ^[191] .

A spokesman for the Russian president Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin “understands” the fact of the elections in the Lugansk and Donetsk people's republics - “two republics that are rejected by Ukraine and are in a state of absolute embargo”. Peskov emphasized: “The Minsk agreements are not implemented by the Ukrainian side ... In these circumstances, plus in the face of danger ... there is nothing left for these republics to renew the force scenario, how to organize themselves in order to ... ensure their own existence, life, (fulfillment) of social obligations to the people whom they abandoned country ” ^[192] .

On November 15, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that he saw no reason for a new meeting of the “Norman Four” during the campaign that had begun in Ukraine. According to him, the current Ukrainian authorities did nothing to implement the Minsk agreements, and there is no reason to hope for a peaceful settlement in the Donbass under the current government. The President of Russia, in particular, accused the Ukrainian authorities of not wanting to exchange illegally detained persons: “The Ukrainian authorities declare a part of people <...> criminals who are subjected to criminal prosecution under the law in force in Ukraine. They go beyond the number of exchanged persons ” ^[193] .

On December 1, the People’s Council of the DPR approved a new prime minister. He became Acting Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers Alexander Ananchenko ^[194] .

During 2018, the parties to the conflict several times agreed on a ceasefire:

• from March 30 - in connection with Easter holidays,
• from July 1 - in connection with the harvest,
• from August 29 - in connection with the beginning of the school year,
• from December 29 - in connection with the New Year.

In December, OSCE Special Representative Martin Saidik said that in 2018, a significant decrease in the number of victims among civilians in the Donbass was recorded ^[195] .

2019

On February 12, a meeting of the UN Security Council on Ukraine was held in New York on the occasion of the fourth anniversary of the signing of the Minsk Agreements (Minsk-2). Before the start of the meeting, the Deputy Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations, Jonathan Allen, read out a joint statement by the UK, France, Germany, Belgium and Poland, in which they called on Russia to “immediately stop fueling the conflict” in Ukraine, “providing military and financial assistance to armed groups” ^[196] .

As the discussion showed, the implementation of the peace plan agreed by the leaders of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine in February 2015 is at an impasse. As a result of the meeting, Jonathan Cohen, US Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, blamed Russia for the lack of progress in the settlement in the Donbass: “Our sanctions on the Donbass will remain in effect until Russia fully complies with the Minsk agreement” ^[1] .

At the same time, the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Arsen Avakov presented at the US Peace Institute an alternative plan for the “de-occupation of Donbass” called the “Small Step Mechanism”, which envisages the creation of a demilitarized security zone “on a separate selected area of ​​the occupied territories”, which the State Border Guard will have to take control service of Ukraine with the support of a special international peacekeeping mission. In such a demilitarized zone, as conceived by the authors, local elections should be held subject to Ukrainian law and the work of all state institutions of Ukraine should be restored. In the future, “when people see that the Ukrainian government has entered with the Ukrainian flag, created transitional compromise conditions, ensured the proper quality of life and security for these people, all other territories will return to Ukraine step by step.” The new plan does not provide for any “federalization and autonomy” - and, of course, “the issue of Ukraine’s course in the EU and NATO is not subject to discussion.” In the self-proclaimed republics of Donbass, the presented plan provoked a predictable negative reaction ^[1] .

On February 14, Minsk hosted another round of negotiations on a peaceful settlement of the situation in the Donbass. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the DPR reported that during the conflict, the Ukrainian authorities owed pension payments to residents of the DPR totaling 71.6 billion hryvnias ($ 2.6 billion). This issue was raised at a meeting of the subgroup on economic issues of the Contact Group in Minsk. It was noted that of the total number of pensioners registered in the DPR, more than half - 370 thousand people - are not able to receive a pension in Ukraine. As of February 1, 2019, approximately 40% of them are people with limited mobility. Despite this, at a meeting of the subgroup, the Ukrainian side refused to introduce the mechanism for paying pensions to people with limited mobility proposed by the International Committee of the Red Cross ^[197] . The Ukrainian side continues to insist that the payment of pensions in uncontrolled territories is impossible due to the inability to verify the recipients of pensions and to avoid manipulation and abuse in the payment of pensions ^{[198] [199]} .

On February 14, plenipotentiary representative of the Russian Federation Boris Gryzlov in the Contact Group for the Settlement of the Situation in Ukraine told TASS that the Russian delegation called on the OSCE to require Ukraine to fulfill its earlier obligations to release the detainees and exchange according to the “all established to all established” formula. According to him, Ukraine refuses contacts with representatives of the DPR and LPR, despite attempts by the OSCE coordinator, Pierre Morel, to unblock the work of the subgroup. In addition, Ukraine, according to Gryzlov, “continues to sabotage the enactment of the law on the special status of Donbass according to the Steinmeier formula” ^[200] .

On March 13, the representative of Ukraine in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group for the Settlement in the Donbass, Irina Gerashchenko, announced on Facebook that she was ready to exchange 25 Russian citizens detained in Ukraine “on ours” and that she was ready to pardon 72 supporters of the DPR and LPR in exchange for 19 Ukrainian citizens held in custody in the Donbass. Irina Gerashchenko also stated that the Russian side is disrupting the humanitarian group’s negotiations with “statements that Russia is allegedly not a party to and a party to the conflict in the Donbass,” and “is trying to impose a direct dialogue on Kyiv” with Donetsk and Lugansk ^[201] .

On March 23, DNR Foreign Minister Natalya Nikonorova made a statement regarding Ukraine’s announced intentions to unilaterally open the CPV in Zolotoy and repair the bridge in Stanitsa Lugansk, calling them “nothing more than provocations disguised as peaceful initiatives.” In fact, according to the minister, the Ukrainian side for two years has ignored the ICRC’s proposal to restore the bridge in Stanitsa Lugansk and is installing new minefields in Zolotoy. Natalya Nikonorova noted that “any actions in the conflict zone should be coordinated by both parties - unilateral conduct of any activities near the contact line poses a danger to the life and health of civilians” ^{[202] [203]} .

In the presidential election, the first round of which took place on March 31 , polling stations in the territory controlled by the DPR and LPR did not open. As the chairman of the DPR People’s Council Committee on Foreign Policy, International Relations, Information Policy and Information Technology, Vladislav Berdichevsky, told reporters, “DPR, anyway, who will be president in Ukraine is not our election, and changes in Ukraine’s policy regarding Donbass we do not expect. " He recalled that this is the second presidential election that ignores the self-proclaimed republics ^[204] .

On April 15, RBC agency, citing a source close to the presidential administration of the Russian Federation, reported that after the second round of the presidential election in Ukraine, which is scheduled for April 21, Russia may introduce a simplified procedure for granting citizenship to Ukrainian citizens living in the territory of Lugansk and Donetsk people's republics, - without mandatory exams and compliance with the requirement of living in Russia for more than five years. The main conditions for changing citizenship will be the presence of passports of the LPR and DPR and the surrender of a Ukrainian passport. According to the DNI Ministry of Internal Affairs at the beginning of 2018, more than 150 thousand of its residents have passports of the DNR. At the end of 2017, the LPR Ministry of Internal Affairs talked about issuing 100 thousand passports. The population of both republics, according to official statistics, is 3.7 million people. Already, DNR and LNR passport holders can use the services of the Russian railway, airlines and hotels ^[205]

On April 18 , shortly before the second round of the presidential election, the leader of the first round, Vladimir Zelensky, said that if he won the election, he would oppose granting special status to Donbass, and also stressed that he would not sign an amnesty law for members of Donbass armed groups ^{[206] [207] [208]} .

On April 21 , at the end of the election, Zelensky said that he intends to intensify the Minsk process: “ We will act, in any case, in the Norman format, we will continue the Minsk process, we will restart it, and I think that we will have personnel replacements ” . According to him, in any case, he intends to " continue the Minsk direction, go all the way in order to cease fire ." Zelensky also said that in the near future he will present an action plan for a ceasefire in the Donbass: “ We will conduct a very powerful information war in order to end the fire in the Donbass ” ^[209] .

On April 22, the First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, Irina Gerashchenko, said she welcomed the statement of the future President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky on supporting the Minsk process: “ I am watching with great interest how the new team supported the Minsk agreements of President Poroshenko as those that are the only realistic today plan for the return of peace to the Donbass . " At the same time, she recalled that the Minsk agreements were signed in a trilateral format - Ukraine, Russia, the OSCE: “ And no one will allow either the Russian scenario or the new team to take steps to legitimize the so-called pseudo-republics. There are no rebels in the Donbass, there are terrorists, militants, as the law on the reintegration of Donbass defined , ”she said ^[210] .

On April 22, at a press briefing, Zelensky’s headquarters speaker Dmitry Razumkov made it clear that Zelensky’s team doubted the effectiveness of involving Viktor Medvedchuk, chairman of the Opposition Platform - For Life party’s political council, in the process of exchanging prisoners of war and hostages: “It was not Vladimir Zelensky who delegated him there, but Petro Poroshenko. If I am not mistaken, Viktor Medvedchuk was primarily responsible for the return of prisoners of war and hostages who are both in the temporarily occupied territory and in the Russian Federation. In my opinion, the last serious exchange took place on December 25, 2017. Therefore, it seems to me that this format of interaction is not very effective ” ^[211] .

April 27 , answering journalists' questions at a press conference following a working visit to China, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that if he ever had a meeting with Vladimir Zelensky, it would first be necessary to talk about how to end the conflict at southeast of Ukraine. Putin expressed conviction that there is only one way to do this - this is the implementation of the Minsk agreements, the key provisions of which include amnesty and special status for unrecognized republics: “If from the threshold, the future president will initially declare that he is not going to to fulfill the Minsk agreements, how is he going to solve this problem then? ” ^[212] . On the same day, on his Facebook page, Vladimir Zelensky announced that he was ready for negotiations with Russia, and expressed hope that “at the next meeting in the Norman format, Russia will demonstrate readiness for de-escalation. A concrete confirmation of this readiness should be the mutual exchange of our citizens in the format of "all for all." Without exception ” ^[213] .

On April 28, the First Deputy Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada, the representative of Ukraine in the humanitarian subgroup of the Trilateral Contact Group, Irina Gerashchenko, on her Facebook page stated that Ukraine had fulfilled the political block of the Minsk agreements by adopting a law on amnesty and local government specificities - “ but these laws have not entered due to the Russian Federation and the Kremlin, which held illegal elections in the occupied territories in 2014 and 2018. " Gerashchenko demanded that the Russian leadership cancel the decrees on the recognition of the Ordlo documents and the results of the elections. She also demanded that Russian President Vladimir Putin cancel their decrees " on the illegal passportization of Ukrainians, and all pseudo-authorities of the pseudo-authorities should be immediately disbanded in the Ordlo ". Gerashchenko said that regional elections in the Donbass can take place only after demilitarization and according to Ukrainian laws. “ And the key: Ukraine must firmly stand on the position - no direct negotiations with puppet regimes created by the Russian Federation, no legitimization of pseudo-republics ” ^[214] .

On May 6, President of Ukraine Poroshenko appointed Lieutenant General Alexander Syrsky as the new commander of the operation of the combined forces (OOS). Since March 2018, this position has been held by General Sergey Nayev. Alexander Syrsky in the early 2010s held the post of first deputy chief of the Joint Operational Command of the Armed Forces. He participated in the battles for Debaltseve in early 2015. In 2016, he headed the Joint Operations Headquarters of the Armed Forces of Ukraine; in 2017, he commanded an anti-terrorist operation ^[215] .

The introduction of a simplified procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship for residents of Donbass

On April 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree allowing residents of a number of regions of southeastern regions of Ukraine to obtain Russian citizenship in a simplified manner. The decree establishes that “persons permanently residing in the territories of certain regions of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine have the right to apply for citizenship of the Russian Federation in a simplified manner” ^{[6] [216]} . Vladimir Putin explained the decision by the need to respect human rights: “We have no desire to create problems for the new Ukrainian government. But to endure a situation in which people living in the territory of the Donetsk and Lugansk republics are deprived of any civil rights whatsoever — it crosses all borders from the point of view of human rights, ”Putin said at a meeting with members of the Legislative Council.“ This is a question purely humanitarian in nature ” ^[217] . Позднее, отвечая на вопросы журналистов на пресс-конференции по итогам рабочего визита в Китай, Путин подчеркнул, что решение о предоставлении в упрощённом порядке российского гражданства жителям ДНР и ЛНР не было спонтанным: «Прежде чем подписать этот указ, мы всё посчитали: и количество возможных претендентов на наши паспорта, и количество пенсионеров из этого числа — это примерно одна треть из того контингента, который, как мы полагаем, может претендовать на наше гражданство». Было посчитано, что дополнительная нагрузка на российскую пенсионную систему в течение нескольких лет может составить около 100 миллиардов рублей, что, как ожидается, не приведёт к сбоям в системе социального обеспечения России ^[212] .

Помощник президента России Владислав Сурков заявил, что считает «крайне важным событием» упрощение получения российского гражданства для жителей ДНР и ЛНР, поскольку, получив российские паспорта, жители Донбасса «будут чувствовать себя более защищёнными и свободными»: «Это долг России перед говорящими и думающими по-русски людьми, которые сейчас оказались в очень тяжёлой ситуации из-за репрессивных действий киевского режима. Украина отказывается признавать их своими гражданами, вводя экономическую блокаду, не допуская их на выборы, применяя против них военную силу. В этих условиях решение президента является абсолютно справедливым и неизбежным» ^[218] .

Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavel Klimkin urged residents of certain regions of Donetsk and Lugansk regions not to accept Russian citizenship: “I urge Ukrainian citizens in Russian-occupied territories not to accept Russian passports. Russia has robbed you of the present, and now it is encroaching on your future. ” He called the decision of the Russian authorities “a new stage in the occupation”: “The decision of the Russian Federation to issue Russian passports in the occupied Ukrainian territories is a continuation of aggression and interference in our internal affairs. This is a new “passport” stage of the occupation of Donbass ” ^[219] .

The team of Vladimir Zelensky regarded the decision of the Russian authorities as recognition by Russia of its “responsibility as an occupying state”: “By decree on the issuance of Russian passports to Ukrainian citizens who are in territories temporarily beyond our control, the Russian Federation recognized its responsibility as an occupying state. These actions are yet another clear confirmation for the world community of the real role of Russia as an aggressor state that is waging war against Ukraine. ” In a statement issued by Zelensky’s team on Wednesday, it was emphasized that Ukraine “will do everything in its power to protect, provide proper assistance and ensure the rights of its citizens who are forced to be in the occupied territories,” and also expects to strengthen diplomatic and sanctions pressure on Russia ^[220] .

President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko in his video address called the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin “an attempt to legitimize the military presence of Russia in the Donbass”: “Illegal issuance of Russian passports according to the so-called South Ossetian and Transnistrian scenario is an attempt to justify and legitimize the military presence of Russia in the occupied territory of Donbass.” Poroshenko urged Ukraine’s partners to condemn the destructive actions of the Russian authorities and strengthen the regime of international sanctions: “The goal of Russia is obvious - to nullify the Minsk agreements, where its obligations are clearly spelled out ... Together with the Minsk obligations, Moscow expects to get rid of sanctions as well,” Poroshenko said ^[221] .

The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine issued a statement condemning the decision of President Putin: "The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine strongly condemns the aggressive actions of the leadership of the Russian Federation, emphasizing the inadmissibility of withdrawing from the implementation of the Minsk agreements and the escalation of tension in the Donbass." The Rada believes that this is “an attempt to justify and expand the military presence of Russia” ^[222] .

In the United States, President Putin’s decree was condemned. The US State Department Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Walker said that this decision undermines attempts to implement the Minsk agreement and return the Donbass to Ukraine’s control. State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said Putin’s decree poses “a serious obstacle to the implementation of the Minsk agreements and the reintegration of Donbass.” In her statement, the territories of Donetsk and Lugansk regions were called "controlled by Russia" ^[223] .

A spokesman for the European Union said that granting Russian citizenship to the residents of the DPR and LPR is another encroachment on the sovereignty of Ukraine, indicating "Russia's intention to further destabilize Ukraine and aggravate the conflict" ^[224] . Permanent representatives of European countries - members of the UN Security Council before an emergency meeting of the Security Council, convened at the request of Ukraine, issued a statement criticizing Russia's decision to grant citizenship of the Donbass citizenship in a simplified manner as contrary to the goals and spirit of the Minsk agreements ^[225] . Russia's actions at the UN Security Council meeting did not find support, but no resolutions were adopted following the meeting, despite the request of Ukraine to vote for a document condemning the Russian initiative ^[226] .

Director of the Information and Press Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova said at a press briefing that the decision to simplify the procedure for issuing Russian passports to residents of the DPR and LPR was made due to the complete lack of prospects for improving the situation in the conflict zone. The diplomat drew attention to the constant violations of the ceasefire, the socio-economic blockade of the Donbass and the systematic infringement by the Ukrainian authorities of the basic civil rights and freedoms of the inhabitants of the region ^[7] .

The heads of the DPR and LPR Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik on behalf of the residents of their republics thanked President Putin for the decision. According to Denis Pushilin, this decision is a major historical milestone “in the history of our young states” ^[227] .

In early May, a simplified procedure for issuing Russian documents to residents of the unrecognized republics of Donbass began to operate. Document reception centers have officially opened in Donetsk and Lugansk, and issuing centers in the Rostov Region, where new Russian citizens will come for ready-made passports. Passport issuing points of the Russian Federation are opened in Novoshakhtinsk (for residents of the LPR) and in the village of Pokrovsky in the Neklinovsky District of the Rostov Region (for residents of the DPR). To obtain Russian citizenship there is no need to abandon the Ukrainian. Applications are accepted through authorized representatives of the DPR and LPR. Estimated time for consideration of the application is up to three months. With a positive decision to acquire citizenship, passports of a citizen of the Russian Federation will be issued in the Rostov Region ^{[228] [229]} .

On May 8, the Minister of Ukraine for Veteran Affairs, Irina Friz, stated that the government is considering the issue of depriving Ukrainian citizens living in certain areas of Donetsk and Lugansk regions and having received Russian passports of the right to receive social payments and pensions from Ukraine ^[230] .

Ukrainian Minister for Temporarily Occupied Territories and Displaced Persons Vadim Chernysh told reporters after a government meeting on May 8 that the government intends to prepare a list of officials of the Russian Federation who are involved in organizing and implementing a simplified procedure for issuing Russian passports to the territory of Donbass that is not controlled by the Ukrainian authorities, to which personal sanctions must be applied. The Government of Ukraine declared the passports issued by Russia to Ukrainian citizens in the “temporarily occupied” territories of Donbass illegal and invalid. The government decided to appeal to the states of the world through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a call to also invalidate such documents ^[231] .

On May 8, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin sent a letter to the EU, NATO, G-7 and the “partner countries”, formally calling on them to expand sanctions against Russia “by including a passport case”. According to the press secretary of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, Yekaterina Zelenko, in Kiev “she counts on clear and consistent support for Ukraine’s position” - in particular, that Russian passports issued to Ukrainian citizens under a simplified procedure will not be recognized, and economic and personal sanctions will be expanded ^{[ 232]} .

On May 13, Klimkin, during a meeting with foreign ministers of the EU member states in Brussels, said that Ukraine would not comply with the Minsk agreements if European countries eased sanctions on Russia in the Council of Europe. According to him, if the EU meets Moscow after it began issuing passports to residents of the DPR and LPR, it will “kill Minsk”: “If you go [to remove the sanction pressure], ... I will come out the same day and say that We don’t have Minsk anymore, and not only Russia killed him, you also killed him. If now, after Russia began issuing passports ... you take steps towards Russia, then the whole logic of what we have done so far is totally destroyed, ”Klimkin added. Earlier it became known that the EU foreign ministers could not come to a consensus regarding the imposition of sanctions against Russia after the introduction of a simplified procedure for granting Russian citizenship to the inhabitants of Donbass ^{[233] [234]} .

Political affairs speaker Zelensky’s team Dmitry Razumkov, commenting on Klimkin’s ultimatum on Newsone, said: “This is a very serious statement by the minister, because most of the sanctions against Russia are tied to Minsk. So easy to dismiss this process, it seems to me, is wrong. " According to Razumkov, after the inauguration of Zelensky Pavel Klimkin with a probability of 99% will not remain at his post ^[235] .

On May 13, Vladimir Zelensky posted on his Facebook page “Message of Peace to the Donbass” - a video in which the leaders of the largest religious organizations in Ukraine called on the inhabitants of Donbass for a “healthy dialogue” and “negotiations” in order to resolve the conflict in the east of the country. In the video, the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate Onufry (Berezovsky), the head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kiev Patriarchate Filaret (Denisenko), the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church Svyatoslav (Shevchuk), the Mufti of Crimea Ayder Rustemov, the main rabbis of several regions of Ukraine and others. The published version of the video does not contain the head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Epiphanius (Dumenko), although it is known that he took part in the recording ^{[236] [237]} .

On May 19, President Poroshenko, one of his last decrees, relieved Yevhen Marchuk of his duties as representative of Ukraine in the Tripartite Contact Group for the Peaceful Settlement of the Situation in Donetsk and Lugansk Regions ^[238] .

On May 20, at the initiative of Russia, the UN Security Council convened an emergency meeting in connection with the adoption in Ukraine of a law on the state language, which, according to Russia, contradicts the letter and spirit of the Minsk agreements approved by the Security Council. The United States, France, Great Britain, Poland, Belgium and Germany, however, blocked the discussion initiated by Russia. A later discussion of this issue at the UN Security Council nevertheless took place ^[239] .

The Presidency of Vladimir Zelensky

On May 20, Vladimir Zelensky, assuming the presidency, called the ceasefire in the east of the country and the return of "Ukrainian Crimea and Donbass" the main priorities of his team. The new president said that in order to achieve these goals, he is ready to sacrifice his post, rating and popularity. Zelensky also said that he was ready for a dialogue to end the war: “ And I am sure that the first step to start this dialogue will be the return of all our prisoners ,” he said in Russian. The next step, according to him, should be the return of the lost territories - for this, first of all, one should appeal to the consciousness of the inhabitants of the occupied part of Donbass and the annexed Crimea ^[240] .

Official representatives of the DPR and LPR welcomed the initiative of President Zelensky, who called for the release of all Ukrainian prisoners, and announced their readiness for an exchange of prisoners ^[241] . Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also called for a dialogue on the exchange of detainees on the principle of "all for all" ^[242] .

On May 24, the head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Andriy Bogdan, on the air of the “Right to Power” program on the 1 + 1 television channel, said that he did not consider it possible to use Viktor Medvedchuk as a representative of the Ukrainian side in negotiations with Russia ^[243] . Medvedchuk himself in an interview with the newspaper “Vzglyad” said that he would not participate in the negotiations on the Donbass under the new president of Ukraine. “I stand for peace in the Donbass, for the return of people living in uncontrolled territories. I stand for the return of Donbass to Ukraine, and Ukraine to Donbass. The position of Mr. Zelensky, which he formulated, is completely contrary to my peace plan, which provides for autonomy for these territories, ”Medvedchuk said. According to him, Zelensky is opposed to a special status for Donbass and against amnesty for citizens of Ukraine who live in uncontrolled territories ^[244] .

May 27 Zelensky first visited the Donbass as head of state. He examined the positions of the Armed Forces in the village of Lugansk and the settlement of Happiness, listened to the report of the commander of the environmental protection system, Alexander Syrsky.

On May 28 , a week after Vladimir Zelensky took office, US Special Representative Kurt Walker , answering questions from world media, explained the US policy towards Ukraine after the presidential election and the American vision for a settlement in the Donbass. Walker said that from the point of view of implementing the Minsk agreements, “ Ukraine cannot do more than it has already done, ” and called the cause of the conflict “Russian occupation”: “ Ukraine adopted a law that grants amnesty to all those who committed crimes during the conflict, she adopted a law granting special status, held elections throughout the rest of the territory and will hold them in the Donbass as soon as she establishes reliable control over its territory. Unfortunately, the failure to comply with the Minsk agreements is associated with the continued Russian occupation of eastern Ukraine and the ongoing armed confrontation there. Thus, Ukraine is not able to move on and do more than what it has already done. At the same time, Russia should achieve the implementation of ceasefire agreements, withdraw its forces from the region, facilitate the dissolution of illegal armed groups and the abolition of “people's republics”, which do not exist in the Ukrainian constitution and which were not parties to the Minsk agreements. In general, Russia still has a lot to do to end the war in the Donbass ” ^[245] .

On May 30, Dmitry Razumkov , the head of the Servant of the People party, which nominated Zelensky for presidential elections, said on the Ukrainian television channel NewsOne that his party would like to connect the United States and Great Britain to the Norman format of negotiations to resolve the conflict in Donbass: “These two States are signatories to the Budapest Memorandum . The consolidation of these efforts on the basis of Normandy will make it possible to more effectively influence the process ” ^[246] .

On June 3, Zelensky appointed Leonid Kuchma as the representative of Ukraine in the Tripartite Contact Group for Settlement in the Donbass (TKG) ^[31] . Kuchma held this post from 2014 to October 2018.

On June 5, the first meeting of the TAG took place after the presidential election, the results of which inspired hope for progress in resolving relations between Kiev and the self-proclaimed republics:

• the parties agreed to prepare a new ceasefire agreement, and it was understood that this new agreement should necessarily include really effective measures to monitor the observance of the ceasefire: a ban on return fire and a ban on shelling of civilian objects (schools, kindergartens) ^{[247 ] [248]} ;
• the question was raised about lifting the economic blockade from the territories of the Donbass not controlled by Kiev ^[249] ;
• Russian representative in the TKG Boris Gryzlov said that on June 10, the separation of forces should begin in the village of Lugansk.

The head of the Ukrainian delegation, Leonid Kuchma, said he was pleased with the meeting. “ We arrived with a roadmap from the president of Ukraine ... The head of state really wants peace in this region. At the meeting ... I expressed those wishes that I heard from the president. It seems to me that everyone has heard that the Ukrainian side and the other side want to solve these problems. Therefore, there was trust in each other, ”the press service of the Ukrainian president quoted Kuchma ^{[247] [248]} .

Messages about the possible adoption of compromise decisions within the framework of the TKG have been sharply criticized by former president Petro Poroshenko, prosecutor general Yuriy Lutsenko and a number of representatives of the deputy corps who took this opportunity as capitulation to Russia ^{[111] [250] [251] [252] [253 ]} . The leadership of the Armed Forces of Ukraine made it clear that there was no question of any refusal of return fire. At the demarcation line, shelling from all types of weapons intensified.

As a result, all the proposals expressed for the next TAG meeting, held on June 19, were disavowed. A ceasefire agreement was not signed, the separation of forces in the area of ​​Stanitsa Lugansk was once again foiled, and with regard to the lifting of the economic blockade, it was stated that there was no blockade, and there were only temporary restrictions on trade with uncontrolled territories, and the question of lifting them can be considered only after the return of the enterprises of Donbass to the legal field of Ukraine.

On June 6, RBC published an interview with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Lavrov said that before discussing the organization of the meeting between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine, Vladimir Putin and Vladimir Zelensky, it is necessary that Ukraine implement the previous agreements reached in the "Norman format" - in particular, the agreements at the level of four leaders on breeding forces and equipment in three pilot areas on the contact line (in the Village of Lugansk, settlements of Zolotoye and Petrovskoye) and on drawing up the procedure for the entry into force of the law on the special status of Donbass in conjunction with in these election territories ^[254] .

On June 11, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement accusing Ukraine of yet another disruption of agreements on the separation of forces and assets in Stanitsa Lugansk, scheduled for June 10 ^[255] .

On June 14, in the Rostov Region, the issuance of Russian passports to residents of the DPR and LPR began using President Putin’s decree on a simplified procedure for granting Russian citizenship ^{[256] [257]} .

June 15 Zelensky visited Mariupol, where he took part in the celebrations on the occasion of the fifth anniversary of the restoration of control of the Ukrainian authorities over this city. At the same time, the first commander of the Azov volunteer regiment, Andrei Biletsky , was a People’s Deputy and head of the National Corps, led the Azov and took part in battles for the city, and is currently claiming to be one of the leaders of the emerging new associations of Ukrainian nationalists. Biletsky spoke at a rally preceding the military parade, which was hosted, in particular, by the head of the Donetsk military-civil administration, Alexander Kuts, who was appointed to this position in June 2018 by President Petro Poroshenko. For Zelensky, however, a separate program was organized with a visit to local enterprises, a demonstration of the capabilities of the fleet and the forces of the National Guard. In his speech on the return of the city to Ukrainian control, President Zelensky emphasized national unity: “ You are free people, you are real Ukrainians! Thank you for saving Mariupol. Mariupol is Ukraine! To tell you the truth, I don’t care what language you speak, you are always Ukrainians, we all understand each other ” ^[258] .

On June 17-18, Zelensky paid official visits to Paris and Berlin. The negotiations showed that Zelensky continues the course of Petro Poroshenko, adhering to a tough stance against Russia. One of the main topics of the negotiations was the cessation of the military conflict in eastern Ukraine. Zelensky said that “ Europe will not be able to feel completely safe, while Russia pretends that international law simply does not exist. Nobody wants Ukraine to become a powder keg, where Crimea and Donbass are Bikford cord . ” Like Poroshenko, Zelensky insists on maintaining diplomatic and sanction pressure on Russia. He also clarified his position regarding the possibility of direct negotiations between Kiev and representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics: “ We are not ready for dialogue with the separatists. We are ready to act in the Minsk format, continue relations in the Minsk format, cease fire, ”Zelensky said ^{[259] [260]} .

On June 19, Vladimir Zelensky appointed four authorized representatives of Ukraine in the working subgroups of the Trilateral Contact Group: Bogdan Bondar is authorized to represent Ukraine in the working subgroup on security issues; Igor Veremii is in the working subgroup on socio-economic issues, Valeria Lutkovskaya is in the working subgroup on humanitarian issues and Alexander Motzik is in the working subgroup on political issues ^{[261] [262]} .

On June 27, it became known that Viktor Medvedchuk in Minsk agreed with the leaders of the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics Denis Pushilin and Leonid Pasechnik on the transfer to the Ukrainian side of four Ukrainian prisoners sentenced by judicial authorities of unrecognized republics to long terms of imprisonment ^{[263] [264]} . This agreement caused a painful reaction among the Ukrainian leadership ^[265] .

On June 28, Zelensky signed a decree granting citizenship to 14 foreign citizens who participated on the Ukrainian side in the armed conflict in Donbass ^[266] , announcing that this decree will be followed by new similar steps without any “artificial inhibition or delay of this process, as it was in past years ” ^[267] .

The withdrawal of forces and assets in the area of ​​the contact line in the area of ​​Stanitsa Lugansk was nevertheless carried out by July 1, which was confirmed by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission. Zelensky in his video address called it “the first step towards a sustainable ceasefire along the entire demarcation line, which was made possible thanks to the unblocking of the Minsk process” ^{[268] [269] [270]} .

On July 3 , meeting with Kurt Walker in Canada, Zelensky, according to his press service, complained that Russia “ does not demonstrate good will to resolve the conflict in the Donbass ”: Russia did not support the “grain truce” proposed by Ukraine, shelling continues, in the temporarily occupied territory of Donbass, the activities of the OSCE SMM are limited ^{[271] [272]} .

On July 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a press conference that the actions of Vladimir Zelensky in the status of head of state (in particular, the statement that he was not ready for negotiations "with the separatists") did not fit with his promises during the election campaign, when Zelensky called one of his main goals the resolution of the conflict in the Donbass ^[273] .

On July 5, Vladimir Zelensky said in an interview with Deutsche Welle radio station: “ You know perfectly well that neither my team nor I have signed this Minsk, but we are ready to go through the points to implement all the Minsk agreements in order to finally we had peace ” ^[274] .

On July 7, Vladimir Zelensky, accompanied by the head of the European Council, Donald Tusk, visited the Lugansk Region and visited the Village of Lugansk, where the destroyed bridge across the Seversky Donets and the only entry and exit point into the territory not controlled by Kiev are located in the region. The trip took place against the backdrop of new reports of shelling by the Ukrainian army of OSCE SMM patrols at a breeding site in the area of ​​the Zolotoye settlement. The main theme of his trip to the Donbass, Vladimir Zelensky made the task of achieving peace and peaceful restoration of the region: “ Our primary tasks in the Donbass are normal water supply, quality of drinking water, restoration of Kramatorsk airport, paying off debts to miners, hospitals and the most painful thing is the roads ,” wrote he is on Twitter on July 5, on the fifth anniversary of the return of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk to the control of the Armed Forces of Ukraine ^[275] .

In early July, Zelensky appointed new governors of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions - Pavel Kirilenko ^{[275] [276]} and Vitaliy Komarnitsky ^[277] .

On July 8, Zelensky during a press briefing following the results of the 21st Ukraine-European Union summit announced that Ukraine was ready to begin rebuilding the bridge in the area of ​​Stanitsa Lugansk in the near future, as soon as the LPR dismantled concrete fortifications on its side of the demarcation line of the parties ^[278] .

On July 8, Vladimir Zelensky turned to Russian President Vladimir Putin via Facebook with a proposal to hold talks in Minsk with the participation of the United Kingdom, Germany, the United States and France. Among the topics proposed for discussion are Crimea affiliation and the conflict in eastern Ukraine ^{[279] [280]} . Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on this occasion that emphasis should be placed on direct dialogue between the parties to the conflict - the Norman and Minsk formats, which are approved by the UN Security Council, although other proposals "probably have a right to exist." Lavrov emphasized that “ when it comes to serious proposals, they are made first through diplomatic channels, and not publicly through Facebook ... But we are ready to consider specific proposals that will help implement the Security Council resolution that approved the Minsk accords, and not replace this resolution and the agreements themselves ” ^[281] . Meanwhile, a representative of the US Department of State in an interview with TASS said that the Department of State did not support the proposal of Vladimir Zelensky to change the format of negotiations on the situation in the Donbass: “ Changing the existing negotiation formats will not remove a genuine obstacle to progress in implementing Minsk. This obstacle is “Russia's lack of political will” ” ^[282] .

On July 9, Vladimir Zelensky appointed Roman Immortal the authorized representative of Ukraine in the working group of the TKG on political issues instead of Alexander Motsik ^[283] .

On July 11, the first telephone conversation took place between Vladimir Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to Dmitry Peskov, press secretary of the Russian president, the telephone conversation took place at the initiative of the Ukrainian side. According to him, the presidents discussed the situation in the Donbass, as well as the work "to return the persons held on both sides." It was agreed to continue this discussion at the expert level. Later, the press service of the President of Ukraine reported that the main topic of the conversation was the release of sailors detained in the Strait of Kerch , as well as “other citizens of Ukraine who are being held in Russia” ^{[284] [285]} . The telephone conversation had practical results and led to a marked increase in efforts to free detainees. On July 12, in Paris, a meeting of foreign policy advisers and assistant leaders of the Norman Four countries was held, at which an agreement was reached on exchanging prisoners during the month, on the so-called "grain truce" for the harvest period, on demining in Stanitsa Luganskaya. The parties also identified the following areas for the separation of forces in the Donbass ^[286] .

On July 15, in Kiev, a meeting of human rights ombudsmen of Ukraine and Russia Lyudmila Denisova and Tatyana Moskalkova took place. During the meeting, the mechanism for the return of Ukrainian citizens from Russia and Russian citizens from Ukraine was discussed. Tatyana Moskalkova noted that the telephone conversation between the Presidents of Ukraine and the Russian Federation gave an impetus to “the possibility of finding effective solutions and helping people”. According to Tatyana Moskalkova, the list of Russian citizens detained in Ukraine includes 50 people, 27 of which are in places of deprivation of liberty, and in relation to 23 people who are at liberty, the courts decided to change the preventive measure from arrest to recognizance not to leave ^[287] . On July 16, in Moscow, Moskalkova and Denisova exchanged lists of detainees whose release is sought by both parties.

At a July 17 meeting of the TAG, an agreement was reached on an unlimited ceasefire from midnight on July 21, Kiev time, as well as on the full access of OSCE SMM observers to all of Ukraine.

The TKG in its statement emphasized the importance of adopting and complying with relevant ceasefire orders, which will be made public statements by the high command of the parties, the effective application of disciplinary measures in cases of ceasefire violations and notification to them of the OSCE SMM, refusal to attack and reconnaissance and sabotage operations. They also emphasized the importance of “not using any type of fire, including sniper fire, of deploying heavy weapons in settlements and in their vicinity, primarily in civilian infrastructure, including schools, kindergartens, hospitals and public buildings”. In addition, an agreement was reached on an early exchange of prisoners according to the formula “69 to 208”. It was agreed to restore the destroyed bridge in the area of ​​the Village Lugansk ^{[288] [289]} .

Vladislav Deynogo, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the LPR and the representative of the LPR at the Minsk talks, recalled that for two and a half years, while the attempts to implement the agreement on the separation of forces and assets in the Village of Lugansk continued, in those areas that were managed to be separated in October 2016 ( Golden in the LPR and Petrovsky in the DPR), the Ukrainian units moved forward, not only taking their previous positions, but also entering territories that were controlled by the DPR and LPR before the separation of forces and assets: “Now we need to restore the status quo, remove Krajina units Ukrainian weapons from the territories, dismantle the fortifications there " ^[290] .

On July 17, Vladimir Putin signed a decree extending the simplified procedure for obtaining Russian citizenship to all residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine, including those registered in territories controlled by the Ukrainian authorities. Use the simplified procedure can those citizens of Ukraine who are in Russia. As of July 17, residents of the DPR and LPR filed about 30 thousand applications for citizenship of the Russian Federation. Another 20 thousand applications for the same period were written by refugees and holders of other migration statuses who left the east of Ukraine after the outbreak of armed conflict and were on Russian territory. Since the entry into force of Decree No. 183, 10,000 Russian passports have been issued to residents of the DPR and LPR ^[291] .

On July 18, two additional points for issuing Russian passports to residents of the DPR and LPR began work in the Rostov Region. In late August - September, it is planned to open four more points there ^[292] . Since the beginning of July, the state-owned enterprise Post of Donbass has organized the issuance of electronic coupons for obtaining new passports. For the period from July 1 to July 24, 42 288 coupons were issued, including 30 442 coupons for a DNR passport and 11 842 for a Russian passport ^[293] .

On July 31, at a meeting of the Contact Group, the parties agreed to begin demining of the territories adjacent to the bridge in Stanitsa Lugansk from August 1 . Upon completion of the clearance, the parties will simultaneously dismantle their fortifications in the area of ​​the bridge, after which they will begin its restoration ^[294] .

On August 5, Zelensky appointed Lieutenant General Vladimir Kravchenko, formerly the head of the North operational tactical group , as the new commander of the operation of the combined forces (OOS), whose zone of responsibility includes the territory of the Zhytomyr, Kiev, Poltava, Sumy, Cherkasy, Chernihiv regions and the city of Kiev ^{[ 295] [296]} .

On August 6, Vladimir Zelensky called on the leaders of the Norman Four countries to negotiate as soon as possible on a peaceful settlement of the situation in the Donbass. This appeal was caused by the death of four Ukrainian servicemen of the 36th separate naval infantry brigade of the Armed Forces of the Armed Forces in the region of Pavlopol of the Donetsk region. According to Zelensky, the incident "is aimed at undermining not only the current ceasefire, but also the negotiation process as a whole ... Ukraine sincerely seeks peace. Today, the whole world saw who exactly does not want the world . " Zelensky said that Kiev would not stop working on the end of hostilities and would not leave unanswered the attack on its troops ^[297] . Representation of the DPR in the Joint Center for the Control and Coordination of the Ceasefire (JCCC) stated that it was not involved in the shelling ^[298] . The DPR People’s Police Department announced that the Armed Forces of Ukraine began preparations for active hostilities in the Mariupol direction ^[299] .

At a briefing at the President’s Office on August 7, Vladimir Zelensky announced his telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin: “He urgently called him and said that this does not bring us closer to the world. I ask you to influence that side so that they stop killing our people . ” Issues of mine clearance around the bridge in Stanitsa Lugansk and its restoration, as well as the issue of the exchange of prisoners were also raised ^[300] . The press service of the President of Russia presented his own, fundamentally different, version of the content of the conversation: “The President of Russia emphasized that in order to de-escalate the conflict, it is necessary, first of all, to exclude further shelling by the Ukrainian troops of the settlements of Donbass, leading to civilian casualties ... The exceptional importance was also confirmed. consistent implementation of the Minsk agreements, including the legal aspects of granting DNR and LC a special status. In this context, the need for a constructive dialogue between the parties, including within the framework of the Minsk Contact Group , was noted ” ^{[301] [302]} .

Roman Bessmertny , the authorized representative of Ukraine in the working group of the TKG on political issues, suggested stopping Ukraine’s participation in the work of the Minsk Contact Group until the summit of the “Norman Four”, stopping the supply of water, electricity, cargo to the “occupied territories”, suspend all works in the area of ​​the Village of Lugansk. The Russian side, however, does not consider the incident to be the basis for an emergency meeting of the leaders of the "Norman Four" ^[302] .

On August 7, Vladimir Zelensky approved the composition of the Commission on Legal Policy, which, in particular, will develop issues related to the reintegration into the single constitutional space of Ukraine of "occupied territories and the population that resides in them." The Commission includes 6 working groups:

• on the preparation of proposals for amendments to the Constitution of Ukraine;
• on the development of legislation on the organization of the judiciary and the administration of justice;
• on issues of criminal law reform;
• on issues of reforming criminal justice;
• on the development of legal education;
• on the reintegration of temporarily occupied territories.

The co-chairs of the commission are professor of the International Law Department of the Institute of International Relations of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv named after Mikhail Buromensky and deputy head of the Presidential Office Ruslan Ryaboshapka ^[303] .

On August 13, Vladimir Zelensky removed Roman Immortal from the tripartite contact group to resolve the situation in eastern Ukraine. The president’s decision is explained by differences in the vision of the Minsk process and the latest harsh statements of the Immortal ^{[304] [305]} . Roman Immortal in the political subgroup was replaced by the diplomatic adviser of the Security Service of Ukraine Valery Grebenyuk.

On September 2, at a meeting in Berlin, assistants to the Norman Four discussed the conditions under which the Summit of the Norman Four could be held. The specific date has not been agreed. Russia at the talks was represented by Assistant to the President of Russia Vladislav Surkov, Ukraine - by the new Foreign Minister of Ukraine Vadim Priestayko, who previously represented Ukraine as an adviser to the president. The Russian side insists on the preliminary implementation of the agreements of past summits (meaning the separation of forces in Petrovsky and Zolotoy), as well as on the approval of the "Steinmeier formula" regarding the entry into force of the law on the special status of Donbass ^[306] .