Germany's Ambassador to Ukraine Christof Weil emphasizes that he is aware of the concerns the Ukrainians have that certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts may possibly break away from Ukraine in the process of the implementation of the Minsk Agreements by way of adopting amendments to the Ukrainian Constitution with regard to the 'special status' of Donbas.
However, he considers the Minsk package to have no alternative.
“The Minsk package includes, among other provisions, the obligation to introduce a special self-government regime for certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts. I know that this is a rather disputable matter in Ukraine and I must speak frankly: this obligation remains intact,” Weil said on Friday, when addressing a public forum on constitutional reform in Ukraine.
“I know also that many Ukrainians fear that the special status included in the draft Constitution is not clear in its definition, as it only gives an opportunity to introduce such a regime,” he added.
Weil went on to say that he is also aware of the Ukrainians’ concerns that “the special status will result in these regions breaking away from Ukraine and thus undermining Ukraine’s integrity.”
However, Weil said that he does not see any Plan B to replace the agreements reached in Minsk, as long as the Minsk package is the only document to allow Ukraine to settle the Donbas situation.
If the obligations set forth in the Minsk package are ultimately forced to be fulfilled by Russia, “Ukraine will save and restore its sovereignty and inviolability, as well as its control over the entire eastern frontier,” he said. “And this is the goal that Germany wishes to achieve,” Weil said.
