The peace process known as the Normandy format has existed since 2014. However, since 2016, it has ground to a halt.
Now, on Dec. 9, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angel Merkel are meeting for the first time in three years to seek a resolution to the war in Ukraine.
As the Kyiv Post has reported, the previous summits have had little impact on ending the war between Ukraine and Russian-backed militants in eastern Ukraine. Below is a breakdown of the five previous meetings held in the Normandy format.
June 6, 2014 – Bénouville, France
President-elect Poroshenko meets Putin and Merkel during a meeting hosted by ex-President of France Francois Hollande. The Normandy format peace process has started.
The leaders came to France to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Normandy Landings in World War II, with the conflict between Ukraine and Russia also on the table. That is how the summit of four got its name.
Outcome: The political leaders agreed to start peace talks, and in September 2014 the first Minsk Protocol on a ceasefire was signed. However, it did not end the war.
Oct. 16, 2014 – Milan, Italy
A new Normandy format meeting took place on the sidelines of the 10th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit, with the primary four negotiators joined by leaders of Italy, the U.K., the European Council, and the European Commission.
Outcome: The parties again agreed to stick to the Minsk Protocol, with Putin insisting that Kyiv needed to negotiate directly with Kremlin-backed militants in the Donbas. Two months later a prisoner swap took place, with 150 Ukrainians exchanged for 222 Russian-baked militants.
Feb. 11–12, 2015 – Minsk, Belarus
The meeting of the Normandy four was held simultaneously with a meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group, a format of meetings between Ukraine and Russia hosted by Belarus on the peaceful settlement of the situation in eastern Ukraine. The talks lasted for 16 hours and resulted in a declaration.
Outcome: Minsk Protocol II was signed, laying out the step-by-step implementation of the Minsk I Protocol. Ukraine complied with the plan, signing a temporary law on special status for the Donbas after local elections, and heavy artillery started to withdraw from the Donbas.
Oct. 2, 2015 – Paris, France
The prerequisites for the special elections in the Donbas were unfulfilled, yet Russian-backed militants proceeded to organize illegal elections. Leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia addressed the issue in a meeting lasting more than 4 hours. They also discussed giving OSCE access to the Ukraine-Russian border.
Outcome: The Russian-backed militants canceled the results of their illegal elections, delaying them for another year. OSCE did not get regular access to monitor the border.
Oct. 19, 2016 – Berlin, Germany
During these last direct negotiations, Ukraine maintained that the war must be stopped before the elections due to security reasons, while Russia insisted Kyiv must make political steps first.
Outcome: Kyiv and Moscow stuck in an inability to negotiate the peace, having totally different approaches on how to end the war.
