U.S. disappointed by lack of progress in Minsk process, authorizes its special representative for Donbas settlement
The United States says it is disappointed by the lack of progress in peace talks on Donbas, eastern Ukraine, therefore a U.S. special envoy has been appointed for Ukraine, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has announced.
"We are disappointed by the lack of progress under the Minsk agreement, that is why we are appointing a special representative to put additional impulses. We will be coordinating carefully with the Normandy members as well, along with yourself and the Russian Federation's government to see if we can now may progress and make progress in a more prompt fashion as well," Tillerson said at a joint briefing with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Kyiv on Sunday.
Tillerson says that the U.S. goal in Ukraine is to restore the country's territorial sovereignty and integrity.
"The United States has already contributed more than $600 million since the beginning of this crisis. We also think it's very important that we seek the safety and the security of all Ukrainian citizens regardless of their ethnicity and nationality, or their religion," he said.
He added he had reiterated in talks with the Russian leaders that Moscow should take the first step to de-escalate the situation in the east part of Ukraine, namely tp cease fire and withdraw heavy weapons, allowing OSCE monitors to carry out their responsibilities.