You're reading: Diplomats’ promise of de-escalation gets skeptical response

A quadrilateral meeting of top diplomats from Ukraine, the United States, the European Union and Russia has agreed to take immediate measures to de-escalate increasing violence and separatist unrest in eastern Ukraine, but many doubt that the deal will work.

After the gathering in Geneva, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Kyiv will give amnesty to pro-Russian separatists, many of whom are suspected of being backed by the Kremlin, except those found guilty of capital crimes.

They are to give up their arms and vacate all illegally occupied public buildings, roadblocks, police stations and public areas.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is to also continue its monitoring mission in Ukraine’s eastern regions and observe that the de-escalation measures are implemented immediately.
Lavrov’s Amercian counterpart, John Kerry, warned him that if he “doesn’t see immediate results of the implementation of this agreement, we won’t have any other option but to impose another round of sanctions against Russia.”

In a joint statement released late on April 17, the sides pledged that they will refrain from any “violence, intimidation or provocative actions” and condemned all expressions of extremism, racism and religious intolerance.

“All illegal armed groups must be disarmed; all illegally seized buildings must be returned to legitimate owners; all illegally occupied streets, squares and other public places in Ukrainian cities and towns must be vacated,” the statement said.

But the pledges were met with skepticism, in Ukraine and elsewhere.
Andrew Wilson, senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told the Kyiv Post he is doubtful that Russia will meet its end of the deal given its aim to prevent the May 25 Ukrainian presidential election from taking place, and which Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 17 said are illegitimate as long as ousted ex-President Viktor Yanukovych is alive.

“It doesn’t add up,” said Wilson. “Russia’s primary task since all this (separatist movement in southeastern Ukraine) began has been to disrupt the vote either by preventing it, minimizing (voter) turnout elsewhere, or have Kyiv impose a state of emergency.”

Regarding Crimea, which Russia annexed on March 18, Kerry and Katherine Ashton, the European Union’s top diplomat, both said that they starkly differed with Lavrov. The American secretary of state told journalists that Russia’s takeover of the autonomous Ukrainian republic was “illegal and violated international law and Ukraine’s constitution…which is why two days ago the U.S. sanctioned them (Russia) again.”

Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council deputy chief Viktoria Siumar furthermore said the outcome of the Geneva talks won’t stop the anti-terrorist operation taking place in Donetsk Oblast.
“Of course not. What does one have to do with the other?” she said.

Siumar said that the Russians no longer control the situation in Donetsk Oblast, just like the Ukrainians, implying that they can not help with disarming militants and freeing buildings. She said there are eight gangs in the Donetsk Oblast Administration alone that have no single leader for negotiations and no single set of demands, which makes the situation difficult to solve at the diplomatic level.

Kyiv Post editor Mark Rachkevych can be reached at [email protected].