The fourth Normandy Format meeting took place on Wednesday evening in Berlin. German Chancellor, Angela Merkel met with President Vladimir Putin, President Francois Hollande and President Petro Poroshenko in order to discuss the ongoing armed conflict in the Donbass region of Ukraine. Representatives of four countries debated about the Minsk II agreement which was signed on 12 February 2015 in Belarus. Approval of the document succeed in a significant reduction of the conflict between pro-Russian separatists and the Ukrainian government for many months. After all, nothing has changed since then and small scale fighting is taking place every day. Wednesday’s Summit was a perfect opportunity to analyse the Ukrainian conflict and to discuss the most effective solutions to the problem.
There is a need to develop and approve a new working “road map for peace” which will become a foundation document of the Minsk II agreement, said President Petro Poroshenko after the meeting.
Apart from that, the question of Russian military involvement in the Syrian civil war was brought up during the talks. It is the most pressing issue in the last few weeks, yet there is no definite conclusion of that matter.
The summit can be treated as a kind of a success because it is a step forward for peace. However, referring to the statement of Angela Merkel, “one shouldn't expect miracles” from the meeting.
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