Steinmeier: Normandy format, contact group needed in 2016

16:30, 05.12.2015 1 min read

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has said that the OSCE can help in settling the Ukrainian-Russian conflict.

He stated this at a briefing in the framework of the OSCE ministerial meeting in Belgrade on Friday evening, according to the European Truth online publication.

The OSCE should not be content with what is now the state of the peace talks in Ukraine, the German foreign minister said.

Next year, there remains a need for the tripartite contact group, and for the Normandy format, he added.

He also stressed the need to achieve a greater level of trust between the parties in 2016, when Germany will act as the presiding country of the OSCE. Building trust is the main task of Germany's presidency, Steinmeier said.