Opinions & Interviews

MOSCOW, 18 January (BelTA-TASS) – Significant progress is possible in the implementation of the Minsk agreements, Boris Gryzlov, a permanent member of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Russia’s plenipotentiary representative in the contact group on Ukraine, said in an interview with the Kommersant newspaper.

"I have no doubts that we can make serious headway in the implementation of the Minsk accords. My meetings in Kiev and Minsk prove this,” he said when asked about the results of his talks with Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko in Kiev and the meeting of the contact group in Minsk.

He stressed that he did not consider the “current situation as an impasse”. "There are many ways and breakthrough options how we can move forward. My task is to explain this to the parties to the process,” said Gryzlov. He admitted that "there are forces that are interested to have the situation at an impasse.” “Even worse, some want to avoid the responsible actions to implement the Minsk accords and therefore take advantage of portraying the situation as being in a dead end,” he said.

Gryzlov said that the agenda for the next meeting of the contact group on Ukraine (scheduled for 20 January) is ready.

Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Boris Gryzlov as Russia’s representative in the contact group on Ukraine on 26 December.