Donetsk, Sep 10 - DAN. The “Normandy Four” (Ukraine, Germany, France and Russia) can hardly have a full-fledged meeting before completion of the investigation into the murder of DPR Head Alexander Zakharchenko,” Director of the Centre of Current Politics Alexey Chesnakov said in an interview to Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency on Monday.
“It will be problematic for the “Normandy Four” to meet at full strength before completion of the Zakharchenko murder probe,” Chesnakov said. “I can hardly imagine it.”
He added that the “Normandy Four” summit was unlikely given the possibility that Ukraine might not extend the law on the special status of Donbass.
“Lastly, the decisions made at the previous meeting have to be implemented before the new one takes place,” the political scientist said. “At the previous meeting in Berlin in 2016, a decision was made to confirm the “Steinmeier’s formula” and ensure the disengagement of forces in three areas on the contact line. None of these decisions has been implemented. What’s the point in having another meeting? To make new decisions which Ukraine will ignore?”
Meanwhile, Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov and U.S. Department of State special representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker might meet in the foreseeable future, i.e. in a rather distant future.” At present, due to the American side’s inconsistency, sluggish correspondence is ongoing with no indication that a compromise might be reached. As I see it, the negotiators have nothing to discuss as yet,” Chesnakov said.
DPR Head Alexander Zakharchenko was killed in an explosion in central Donetsk on August 31. The DPR said that it was a terrorist attack carried out by Ukraine. The Russian delegation at the Contact Group meeting in Minsk on September 5 demanded international investigation into Zakharchenko’s murder under the aegis of the OSCE.*jk