Situation in eastern Ukraine stabilizes after Putin's meeting with OSCE head
7 May 2014, 22:04 -- The situation in the Donetsk region has stabilized; there are no hostilities, representative of the self-defense of Donbass said. 'The mortar fire in Slavyansk stopped. The situation also remains calm in Mariupol after the restoration of control over the city council. Neither is there any fighting in other towns of Donetsk region,' he said.
However, 'Ukrainian regular troops and Right Sector units are not being withdrawn from communities,' he said, Interfax reports.
OSCE ready to coordinate settling of Ukrainian crisis – OSCE chairperson
The OSCE is ready to assume the coordination of operations in relation to the roadmap of settling the situation in Ukraine, Swiss President and OSCE Chairman-in-Office Didier Burkhalter has said. 'Documents expressing the plan will be submitted to all four sides that signed the Geneva agreements in the next few hours,' he said at a joint press conference with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow after their talks.
He added that OSCE on its part is ready to assume coordination and the arrangement of related contacts.
He said that on Thursday the OSCE representative for Ukraine and the OSCE Secretary General would be in Kiev. He said contacts with the United States were also planned.
Burkhalter said that in relation to this work he would travel to Brussels on Wednesday evening.
'We are counting on political responsibility, the sense of political responsibility inherent in the leaders of all the four sides that signed the Geneva declaration and hope that all the measures stipulated by the concrete plan of action will be taken in the very nearest future,' he said, Interfax reports.
No plans to hold Geneva-2 on Ukrainian crisis - OSCE chairperson
There are no plans as of yet to hold the Geneva-2 conference for analyzing the fulfillment of earlier agreements in the Ukrainian peace process, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Swiss President Didier Burkhalter said. Burkhalter said after negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin a conference assessing the fulfillment of the Geneva deal, the so-called Geneva-2, was not on the current agenda.
The OSCE chair said they were suggesting a more pragmatic step - a four-item action plan offered for consideration to the four signatories to the Geneva agreements - to know which items were points of consent and which might need adjustment for their soonest implementation.
Burkhalter said it was realistic to start dialogue between various political and public groups in Ukraine.
In his words, a national dialogue in Ukraine is possible because only the Ukrainian people, the Ukrainian nation need to decide on their future.
Burkhalter emphasized that the dialogue should not be limited to persons of some political weight but involve the entire population.
In turn, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he 'did not know how realistic the Geneva-2 idea was.' The primary objective is the direct dialogue between the Kiev authorities and southeastern Ukraine, he stated.
'I am absolutely positive there is no other way to a lasting settlement of the Ukrainian crisis but an open, fair and equal dialogue,' Putin emphasized, Interfax reports.
OSCE head urges all sides to end violence in Ukraine
OSCE Chairman-in-Office Didier Burkhalter has invited parties to the April 17 Geneva statement to speak out for stopping violence in Ukraine and denouncing all attempts of intimidation and provocation. As for the termination of violence and a ceasefire, it is vital that at the very highest priority, and, people in whom political responsibility is vested should speak of their rejection of violence, of the need to stop violence, of the need to stop intimidation and provocations, he said at a Wednesday meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
The OSCE chairsaidthey were suggesting a more pragmatic step-a four-item action plan offered for consideration to the four signatories to the Geneva agreements - to know which items were points of consent and which might need adjustment for their soonest implementation.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe is offering to set up a fund to finance the implementationof a proposed disarmament plan in Ukraine, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Didier Burkhalter announced at a joint news conference on Wednesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
As regards a proposed pan-national dialogue in Ukraine to precede with the planned presidential election on May 25, Burkhalter said the OSCE is suggesting a series of roundtables and discussions between officials, politicians and activists in central Ukraine and the provinces as the starting point of a pan-national discussion.
He argued that proposals for the decentralization of government and security issues should be the main items on the agenda. He confirmed that the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights would send up to 1,000 observers to the presidential polls.
In another comment on the current violence in eastern Ukraine, he insisted that top Ukrainian leaders and senior figures at lower tiers of government declare violence to be unacceptable and to take measures to end it.
He also said the OSCE is proposing a crisis settlement roadmap comprising four points- a ceasefire, de-escalation of tensions, dialogue, and elections. He said that within hours the roadmap would be put before Russian, Ukrainian, US and European Union diplomats who are meeting for quadrilateral talksinGeneva, Interfax reports.
Head of OSCE has ideas how to ease tension in Ukraine
Chairman of the OSCE Didier Burkhalter has brought to Moscow his proposals for soothing the tension in the Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed the beginning of this discussion when he opened talks with the current OSCE chairman in the Kremlin.
The Russian president did not give details of Russia's stand on the Ukrainian problem, saying that it is common knowledge. Putin said that he already discussed the tragic events in the Ukraine with Didier Burkhalter in recent months.
Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed looking for ways to overcome the crisis in Ukraine at a meeting with OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and President Didier Burkhalter of Switzerland in Moscow on Wednesday.
'Your visit is very timely, you and I have already discussed issues related to the hard and tragic events in Ukraine,' Putin said at the outset of the meeting.
The Russian leader suggested that Burkhalter has some ideas as to how the crisis could be overcome.
'Let's try to analyze the situation and look for ways out of the crisis,' Putin said. Burkhalter thanked Putin for the opportunity for dialogue, pointing out that the two are discussing the matter for the third time in 2014, and the previous discussion concerned a decision on setting up a special monitoring commission.
Burkhalter said he would like to discuss a road map for settling the Ukraine crisis in detail so that it could be put into effect.
As for the termination of violence and a ceasefire, it is vital that at the very highest priority, and, people in whom political responsibility is vested should speak of their rejection of violence, of the need to stop violence, of the need to stop intimidation and provocations, he said at a Wednesday meeting with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
There are no plans as of yet to hold the Geneva-2 conference for analyzing the fulfillment of earlier agreements in the Ukrainian peace process, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Swiss President Didier Burkhalter said.
Burkhalter said after negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin a conference assessing the fulfillment of the Geneva deal, the so-called Geneva-2, was not on the current agenda.
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