‘Normandy Four’ talks end in Minsk: day two (LIVE, photo, video)
The talks at the Independence Palace in Minsk end after 16 hours with no documents signed by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany.
The second day of the meeting of ‘the Norman Four’ in Minsk Independence Palace was dedicated to the situation in Donets Basin. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President François Hollande, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the negotiations. OSCE special representative Heidi Tagliavini joined them.
The negotiations took the whole night. See our first online report for the details.
Online broadcast
11:10. The four leaders are negotiating in the tea room again. OSCE special representative Heidi Tagliavini has joined them.
11:00. Putin has joined Poroshenko, Merkel and Hollande. The four state leaders are negotiating again.
10:35. "Unfortunately, there is no good news. No news at all. But there is still hope,” RIA Novosti quotes Petro Poroshenko. Some of Russia’s suggestions are unacceptable, the Ukrainian President claimed, AFP reports.
10.15. The document that is about to be signed in Minsk provides a ceasefire agreement starting from February 14, the removal of heavy artillery and the creation of a safety zone. No other details have been reported.
08.52. The final Minsk summit documents that will be signed by the leaders of Germany, France, Ukraine and Russia will be handed over to the trilateral contact group (Ukraine-Russia-OSCE), RIA Novosti reports. The latter has been holding meetings in Minsk for two days. The representatives of the self-declared ‘DPR’ and ‘LPR’ are also part of the group.
It is known that the document consists of at least 10 paragraphs.
08.40. The Foreign Ministers have left. Only the state leaders keep negotiating.
8.00. The document may be signed within an hour, Euroradio journalist Ales Piletski reports. The exact time has not been announced yet.
7.35. TV journalists have been invited to a hall where the leaders of Germany, France, Ukraine and Russia may sign an agreement at about 7.30 a.m. on February 12. The other journalists will watch a broadcast. There is excitement in the Independence Palace now. Probably, the state leaders have reached some agreement.
Photo: AFP
