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As New Ukraine Peace Talks Begin, Risk of Broader Conflict Looms
Published on
Wednesday, February 11, 2015
byCommon Dreams
byDeirdre Fulton, staff writer
Poroshenko arrives in Minsk saying situation is on the verge of going 'out of control.'
The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany gathered on Wednesday in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, to try to broker a peace agreement after 10 months of conflict that has claimed more than 5,000 lives and set the stage for a protracted proxy war, with the U.S. and NATO forces on one side and Russia on the other.
Even as the world leaders convened, violence flared in eastern Ukraine, underscoring the critical need to reach an agreement.
"There is no military solution to this conflict, only a political one; and a new supply of U.S. arms will provide ammunition for Russian leaders who believe, fairly or not, that America is attempting to turn Ukraine into a military base near Russia’s borders."
—Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation
As he arrived in Minsk, Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko said: "Either the situation goes down the road of de-escalation, ceasefire ... or the situation goes out of control."
According to the New York Times:
Even as the world leaders convened, violence flared in eastern Ukraine, underscoring the critical need to reach an agreement.
"There is no military solution to this conflict, only a political one; and a new supply of U.S. arms will provide ammunition for Russian leaders who believe, fairly or not, that America is attempting to turn Ukraine into a military base near Russia’s borders."
—Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation
As he arrived in Minsk, Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko said: "Either the situation goes down the road of de-escalation, ceasefire ... or the situation goes out of control."
According to the New York Times:
Negotiations on what exactly the leaders would discuss continued even as the various governments announced that their leaders were heading to Minsk. The talks are based on a 12-point peace agreement called the Minsk Protocol, signed here in September but violated almost immediately.
A group of negotiators from Russia and Ukraine, as well as from the separatist strongholds of Donetsk and Luhansk, were trying to make the final arrangements for a cease-fire and the size of a demilitarized zone, according to a Ukrainian diplomat who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the talks.
"There is no military solution to this conflict, only a political one; and a new supply of U.S. arms will provide ammunition for Russian leaders who believe, fairly or not, that America is attempting to turn Ukraine into a military base near Russia’s borders."
—Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation
—Katrina vanden Heuvel, The Nation
Full article: http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/02/11/new-ukraine-peace-talks-begin-risk-broader-conflict-looms
