Ukraine peace talks participants arrive in Minsk amid worsening crisis

Their meeting is expected to take place behind closed doors.



Ukraine is being represented by ex-president Leonid Kuchma. Others are Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Heidi Tagliavini, and Russian ambassador to Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov.



All of the three have their signatures under the September Minsk peace agreements, which stipulated ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy artillery from the frontline and exchange of prisoners.



The self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk have also sent their envoys to Minsk - Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego.



However Kuchma said he was only ready to have talks with the leaders of the self-proclaimed republics - Aleksandr Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky.



“There must be Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky. Those who signed the agreements and who have some power,” he said as cited by Segodnya.ua.



Donetsk and Lugansk representatives said that the heads of the territories – Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky - would only come to the meeting in case of a halt in military actions and a new agreement ready and approved by the envoys.



“After that they will be ready to come,” Pushilin said, as cited by TASS. “I guess the main argument in support of them now staying with their citizens, actually facing genocide, is yesterday’s shelling of people queuing for humanitarian aid [in Donetsk]. 12 people were killed as a result and 20 were injured.”



The shelling of densely populated civilian areas in eastern Ukraine was on Saturday condemned by the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine, Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan.



“I urge all sides to exercise maximum restraint, and fully assume their responsibility to prevent further displacement and suffering, and to redouble their efforts to reach a political settlement,” said Apakan.



At least 12 civilians were killed in Donetsk on Friday. The self-proclaimed republic’s officials said Ukrainian troops shelled the city from a neutral zone north of the airport. Kiev has blamed rebels, describing the attack as an attempt to undermine the Minsk peace talks.



READ MORE: 12 killed in shelling of humanitarian aid center, bus stop in Donetsk