The recognition by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe of the presence of the Russian armed forces in Ukraine is unprecedented, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has reported, according to a Ukrinform correspondent.
“The official recognition in the [Committee of Ministers] decision of the presence of the Russian armed forces on Ukrainian territory, which Russia still continues to deny, is unprecedented,” reads the report.
The ministry also noted the importance of other provisions of the decision, in particular, on the need for all parties to fully comply with the Minsk protocol.
“A serious signal in the decision of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe is a call on the Russian side to use its influence on separatist groups to de-escalate the situation in east Ukraine, refrain from the supply of arms and military equipment to the conflicting sides and establish control over the border in order to avoid illegal shipments of such equipment,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.
At the same time, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry welcomes the Council of Europe’s readiness to provide the necessary assistance to Ukraine, including in holding early parliamentary elections and implementing important domestic reforms: constitutional, judicial, in the field of decentralization of power and the protection of the rights of national minorities.