Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and French President Emmanuel Macron have condemned the elections in the eastern Ukrainian rebel areas as „unlawful and illegitimate.“
The elections in certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions contradict the spirit of the Minsk Agreements and the declaration of the heads of state and government of the four Normandy states adopted at the same time in February 2015, Merkel and Macron said in a joint statement.
Meeting with Poroshenko in Paris
In Normandy format, Germany and France are negotiating with Russia and Ukraine about the conflict in eastern Ukraine. Yesterday, rebels were called upon to redefine the presidents and parliaments of the self-proclaimed „People’s Republics“ Donetsk and Luhansk. Merkel and Macron met in Paris with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
According to her statement, the Chancellor and the French leader emphasized that the holding of these „so-called elections“ undermines the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine. Local elections should be held in the affected areas in accordance with the Minsk Agreements and should therefore be „in accordance with OSCE and Ukrainian law“.
Merkel and Macron recalled the responsibility of all sides to respect the ceasefire, the unbundling and withdrawal of heavy weapons and to fully implement the Minsk agreements. They strongly supported the exchange of detainees and the release of political prisoners by the end of the year.
