Former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma, who is Kyiv's negotiator in the Trilateral Contact Group, hopes that the Normandy Quartet foreign ministers will manage to make advancement during their meeting in Minsk with regard to agreeing on a draft roadmap for implementation of the Minsk Agreements.

"I am hopeful that tomorrow, four minister will gather together and make such decisions that will leave the Ukrainian side more or less satisfied. After all, we, Ukraine and Russia, look at this problem with different eyes," Kuchma told reporters during a working trip to Ukraine's Zakarpattia Region on Monday.

Kuchma went on to once again emphasize that first and foremost, Ukraine needs peace and as long as there is no peace in Donbas, no elections can be held there. "To what extent will the Ukrainian side be able to persuade the Russian side, with the help from Germany and France, that there is no other way? For I don't know any examples in the world where elections are held in an occupied territory," he said.

Kuchma noted that there is still no progress achieved on separation of conflicting parties in Donbas.

He recalled that it had been agreed in Minsk that the sides would be disengaged in three areas. "In two [of the areas] troops and weapons have been withdrawn, but in Stanytsia Luhanska this has yet to be done. The reason is clear: the opposing side doesn't want it," Kuchma said.

At this point, observance of the regime of calm is the main task to be solved, he said. As long as the ceasefire regime is being violated, one must not make any concessions, Kuchma believes. "If we cannot achieve peace over a [distance of] nine km, then what can we say about 400 km?" Kuchma said.