Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has visited eastern Ukraine with his counterparts from Paris and Kyiv. But the seven-day ceasefire now in effect is just a first step, Germany's top diplomat told DW.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/M. Rothbart
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The German and French foreign ministers made their first visit to Ukraine's war-torn east on Thursday. Government forces have battled separatists in the region since April 2014.
"Anyone familiar with such conflicts...will know that we have no reason to be optimistic," Steinmeier said in an interview with DW. But, he added, the ceasefire would likely be a good "stepping stone toward renewed negotiations."
Steinmeier and his French and Ukrainian counterparts, Jean-Marc Ayrault (right in photo) and Pavlo Klimkin, respectively, arrived in government-controlled Kramatorsk Thursday morning. Germany's foreign minister also delivered new equipment to observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, including 1,200 pairs of gloves, binoculars, GPS trackers and clothing.
Steinmeier stressed the need for continued vigilance, however, telling DW that "we cannot be satisfied with just a seven-day ceasefire, even if it holds."
'A sustainable de-escalation'
Officials in Kyiv say Russia has militarily backed separatists. Officials in Moscow deny any direct role in the conflict, which has brought the Kremlin's relations with Western Europe to their lowest level since the Cold War.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed optimism that the foreign ministers' visit would encourage Ukraine's government to fulfill its ceasefire promises, including elections in the east as part of the 13-point plan to give the territory more autonomy. "If this visit contributes to Ukraine's implementation of commitments, then it can only be welcomed," Peskov told journalists on Thursday.
Government officials say Ukraine cannot hold the elections until security conditions allow for them and national forces have regained control of the border with Russia - another point of the Minsk agreement not yet implemented. And Ukraine's military has accused separatists of opening fire on government positions four times since the truce came into force; the rebels say Kyiv has also failed to fully respect the truce.
On Thursday, the United Nations reported that the situation has worsened in recent months and remains deeply unstable. "In fact, there is a real risk that a new outbreak of violence could happen at any time," UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said.
The UN also reported that the conflict had led to the deaths of 188 civilians in the past three months, pushing the total number of people killed to 9,640. Pre-ceasefire fighting on Wednesday led to the deaths of three separatist soldiers and three government troops.
In just under two and a half years, the conflict has internally displaced about 1.7 million people. An additional 1.1 million have fled to neighboring countries.
mkg/kms (Reuters, AFP, dpa)
Make love, not war: Ukrainian-Russian love overcoming conflict
The Ukraine-Russia conflict is increasingly polarizing people of both countries. But these couples are bridging the nationality gap and growing stronger together.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Lina & Vitya
My mom is Russian, my dad is Ukrainian. They met each other at Kharkov State University and have lived together for more than 50 years now. My parents gave me that sense of friendship between people traveling everywhere. I think it’s one of the key moments - to understand each other we need to communicate with different people and to educate ourselves.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Arthur & Oksana
I'm Russian, but was born in Ukraine. Arthur is Ukrainian. We first met three years ago during a photography workshop and became friends. After mutual visits in several countries, Arthur moved to Moscow when we decided to live together. Now we work and travel together, visiting our friends and families in Russia, Ukraine and around the whole world.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Olga & Vladimir
Vladimir is a Russian contemporary artist, Olga is a ballerina. She was born in Kirovogradskaya region, Ukraine. They live together in Khimki, Russia, with their newborn baby. They were one of the first couples who agreed to be photographed when our mutual friend posted my picture on Facebook.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Yulia & Edik
Yulia, born in Ukraine, and Edik, born in Russia, are refugees from Donbass and live in Moscow with their 4-year-old son Dima. The two of them have relatives in both Russia and Ukraine. Because of their son, the couple decided to flee the war - leaving their relatives behind - and move to Moscow. That's where Life Links reporter Emily portrayed Yulia for the episode #prideandprejudice.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Dima & Sasha
Dima is from Russia, Sasha was born in Ukraine. Sasha is a member of Femen and the first time they met was when Dima, as a photographer, came to do a report about Femen in Kiev for the New York Times. Since then they have been in a relationship. Some time later Sasha left Ukraine and asked for political asylum in France. Since then Dima and Sasha have lives in Paris.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Dima & Vlada
Dima and Vlada are good friends of mine. I've known them for ages, but I never thought about them as participants for my projects; I just forgot their story. Dima was born in Moscow, Russia. Vlada is from Kiev, Ukraine. They met each other in Georgia and had a long distance relationship in the beginning. Finally, the couple decided to live together in US, where they had their baby Lev a year ago.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Maksim & Darya
Darya (from Ukraine) and Maksim's (from Russia) love story started on a summer day in Voronezh, Russia. Using the same ride-sharing service, they spent 7 hours together. Maxim said it was love at first sight. When I photographed them, Darya was just back from a trip, so the couple had been apart for several days. They were hugging and kissing each other and it looked very natural and beautiful.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Valery & Sveta
Valery is from Odessa, Ukraine. Sveta was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia. They met in Odessa when Sveta came to visit her friend. They became friends first, but a year later they got married. They are both interested in yoga, different cultures and esoteric things. I loved being in their small apartment in Saint Petersburg because you could feel all the harmony and beauty surrounding them.
Image: Oksana Yushko
Sasha & Lena
Alexander is from Krasnodar, Russia. Lena was born in Kiev, Ukraine. They met on vacation in Greece in 2013, a couple of months before the Euromaidan demonstrations started in Kiev. After spending a day together, it made them think about each other. A year later Lena moved to Moscow to live with Alexander. Their relationship became even stronger in the face of the problems between the two nations.
