Six countries call on Putin not to recognize Russian proxy ‘republics’ in Donbas
France, Germany, Albania, Norway, Estonia, and Ireland at a UN meeting to discuss the Russia crisis on Feb. 17 called on Russian President Vladimir Putin not to recognize the so-called “people’s republics” of Donetsk and Luhansk.
The permanent representatives of the six countries to the UN noted that the recognition of the Donbas puppet authorities by Russia would violate international law, as the Kremlin would be officially encroaching on the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
“We warn that such a step will lead to further violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and will directly violate the letter and spirit of the Minsk agreements,” said French diplomat Nicolas de Rivière.
On Feb. 15, the Russian parliament submitted a petition to President Vladimir Putin to recognize the proxy republics. Commenting on the decision, the Russian leader said that the country “should do everything to solve the problems of Donbas.”
The Kremlin later announced that Putin had received the appeal and “taken note of it.”
On Feb. 16, Ukraine asked the UN Security Council to discuss the resolution of the State Duma of the Russian Federation on the recognition of the non-government-controlled parts of Ukraine.
Mykhailo Podolyak, advisor to the head of the President's Office of Ukraine, said that the Duma’s appeal to Putin is deemed an attempt to escalate, and would complicate the situation in Europe.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated that Russia's recognition of the non-government-controlled parts of Ukraine would mean a conscious withdrawal from the Minsk agreements, which would deal a serious blow to peace process to resolve the conflict in Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region. The EU and NATO have also condemned the State Duma decision.
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