You're reading: Poroshenko accused of clandestine talks with Russia

Critics have accused Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko of engaging in clandestine diplomacy during peace talks with Russia, but others have dismissed this criticism as unfounded.

The debate followed the
publication by Dzerkalo Tyzhnya on Jan. 23 of what it said was a secret
addendum to the Sept. 19 Minsk memorandum outlining the terms for a cease-fire
between Ukraine and Kremlin-backed mercenaries and insurgents.

Svyatoslav Tsegolko, a
spokesman for Poroshenko, refused comment on Jan. 27.

The addendum, signed by
Russia, Ukraine, separatists and the Organization for Cooperation and Security
in Europe (OSCE) set a demarcation line between Ukrainian and Russian-backed
troops to the west from the de facto front line, effectively giving some areas to
insurgents. In exchange, Ukraine was supposed to get a small area near Debaltseve.

According to this addendum,
the Donetsk Airport was expected to be given to insurgents, Dzerkalo Tyzhnya
reported. This provision has triggered a scandal because previously Ukrainian
authorities had claimed that the airport was part of Ukrainian-controlled areas
under the Minsk memorandum.

Poroshenko said on Jan. 25
that Donetsk Airport was supposed to be part of the “demilitarized” zone,
apparently referring to the buffer zone.

The Minsk memorandum
stipulated creating a buffer zone, meaning that military equipment with a
caliber of more than 100 millimeters would be withdrawn by 30 kilometers from
the demarcation line by each side.

Effectively, neither the
clause on the withdrawal of heavy weaponry nor any other clauses of the Minsk
memorandum have been complied with. Ukrainian authorities have accused
Russian-backed separatists of constantly violating the cease-fire agreement.

Political analyst Vitaly
Bala, head of the Situation Modeling Agency, dismissed the Minsk agreement as a
farce and attributed the Dzerkalo Tyzhnya article and criticism of Poroshenko
to a deliberate campaign to discredit the president.

Viktoria Syumar, a former
deputy secretary of the National Security and Defense Council and currently a
lawmaker on the People’s Front’s list, agreed.

“Military maps should
always be secret because defensive lines are delineated there,” she said by
phone.

Since the memorandum was
signed, Kremlin-backed troops have pushed the front line westward and gained
over 550 square kilometers of territory, according to Dzerkalo Tyzhnya.

On Jan. 15, Russian
President Vladimir Putin sent to Poroshenko a letter that proposed drawing a
demarcation line based on the de facto front line as of Jan. 15, which is
located further westward from the line stipulated by the addendum to the Minsk
memorandum.

Poroshenko said on Jan. 28
that he had sent a response to Putin, demanding that Russia comply with the
Minsk cease-fire agreement and release Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko.

Savchenko, a member of
Ukraine’s volunteer Aidar Battalion, was taken prisoner by Kremlin-backed
troops in June and subsequently brought to Russia, where she is being held
jailed.

According to a copy of
Poroshenko’s letter published by Dzerkalo Tyzhnya, Poroshenko effectively
rejected Putin’s proposal, saying that the parties should adhere to the
demarcation line stipulated by the Minsk memorandum.

“I think everything that
Putin is doing is an attempt to raise the stakes in an effort to lift
sanctions,” Syumar said. “He’s doing everything to strengthen his positions by
escalating this conflict.

Kyiv Post staff writer
Oleg Sukhov can be reached at [email protected]