MINSK, 27 February (BelTA) – A meeting of working subgroups of the Trilateral Contact Group to discuss ways to resolve the situation in eastern Ukraine is underway in Minsk, BelTA learned from the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The talks by the working subgroups will be followed by the meeting of the Trilateral Contact Group. During the meeting in Minsk on 13 February the subgroup on humanitarian affairs welcomed the handover of 33 captives, who were not involved in the ongoing conflict, from certain parts of Lugansk Oblast to the territory Ukraine's government controlled. The handover took place on 7 February. The subgroup continued discussing matters concerning consequent handovers of such captives.
On 12 February it was four years since a set of measures to implement the Minsk agreements was signed. This document along with the Minsk protocol, the Minsk memorandum represents a core component of the Minsk agreements, which guide the day-to-day operation of the trilateral contact group on Ukraine in Minsk. “Unfortunately, we've been unable to get close to resolving the conflict yet,” OSCE's special representative in the trilateral contact group on resolving the situation in Ukraine's east Martin Sajdik stated. He went on saying that he had talked about it in a video conference during the session of the UN Security Council, which had taken place on the night on 13 February (Minsk time).
The session of the trilateral contact group was timed to the fourth anniversary of the second package of the Minsk agreements. The international community demonstrated deep concern over events in Ukraine's east. Participants of the session drew attention to the humanitarian aspect of the conflict and the need to ensure the safety of civilians. The OSCE's role in helping resolve the conflict in Ukraine's east was mentioned.
