NATO-MEETING/STOLTENBERG NATO chief accuses Russia of violating ceasefire agreement in Ukraine

Record ID: 862598

  • Title: NATO-MEETING/STOLTENBERG NATO chief accuses Russia of violating ceasefire agreement in Ukraine
  • Date: 2nd December 2014
  • Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (DECEMBER 2, 2014) (REUTERS) STOLTENBERG SEEN ON CAMERA VIEWFINDER MEDIA STOLTENBERG LEAVING
  • Embargoed: 17th December 2014 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Belgium
  • City:
  • Country: Belgium
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVAAF5IV8SJKEFC0F1FPO456KOZG
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  • Story Text: NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg on Tuesday (December 2) repeated his call for Russia to stick to the Minsk ceasefire agreement intended to halt the conflict in eastern Ukraine, and to stop supporting the separatists.
    Stoltenberg was speaking at the start of a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels where the crisis in Ukraine will be discussed.
    "The problem has been that the separatists and Russia is not respecting the Minsk agreements. The ceasefire is violated. And for instance the Minsk agreement which states that we should have monitoring of the international recognised borders of Ukraine has not been possible to implement because the work of those who are responsible for monitoring the borders have been severely undermined. So, to respect the international borders, to make it possible to have independent international monitoring of the border, to stop the provision of military equipment of tanks, of forces to the separatists in Ukraine is something which is very important and we call on Russia to do exactly that," Stoltenberg told journalists upon arrival.
    NATO says Russia has been sending large deliveries of advanced weapons to pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine and has accused Moscow of using humanitarian aid shipments to send weapons and ammunition to separatist rebels.
    Moscow denies using humanitarian convoys to transport weapons and rejects Western accusations that it is arming the rebels and sending fighters to aid them. It accuses the West and Kiev of pressing a campaign of indiscriminate violence in the eastern territories of Luhansk and Donetsk.
    NATO foreign ministers are set to review steps the 28-nation alliance has taken to boost its defences and to reassure nervous eastern European allies following Moscow's annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region in March.
    They are expected to agree to continue the measures, which include exercises and rotations of small numbers of troops to eastern Europe, throughout 2015.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2014. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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