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Ukraine ceasefire talks to begin in Minsk: President

Iran Press TV

Sat Dec 6, 2014 5:9PM GMT

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says he is sending an envoy to a crucial round of peace talks with pro-Russian fighters on implementing various steps of a recently-clinched ceasefire deal.

Poroshenko said on Saturday that a "preliminary agreement" had already been reached for talks in the Belarusian capital Minsk on December 9.

He added that envoys from Moscow and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) will also take part in the meeting.

On September 5, representatives of Ukraine, Russia, and pro-Russian forces in eastern Ukraine and the OSCE security watchdog held talks in Minsk, which led to Kiev and pro-Russia fighters agreeing on a 12-point peace plan, known as the Minsk Protocol.

Poroshenko said the upcoming talks on Tuesday would focus on agreeing a "timetable for implementing" the terms of the protocol, including the creation of a non-militarized buffer zone, from which the two sides will withdraw artillery and other heavy military equipment.

"On December 9, we will have a Day of Silence," he said in reference to a pledge made by Ukraine and the pro-Russia forces to stop fighting across the eastern conflict zone under the terms of a Kremlin-brokered cease-fire, adding, "And in the subsequent 30 days, (the sides) must pull back from the demilitarization zone outlined in the Minsk Protocol."

Ukraine's mainly Russian-speaking regions in the east have witnessed deadly clashes between pro-Russia forces and the Ukrainian army since Kiev launched military operations to silence the pro-Moscow protests in mid-April.

According to the latest figures released by the United Nations, more than 4,300 people have been killed in the fighting. In addition, nearly a million people have been forced to flee their homes.

Kiev and its Western allies accuse Russia of having a hand in the chaotic situation in eastern Ukraine. However, the Kremlin has repeatedly denied the allegation as baseless.

YH/KA/SS