ICRC Sees No Progress In Settling Humanitarian Issues In Donbas Since Last Year's Truce

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 25th June, 2021) There has been no progress in resolving humanitarian issues sparked by longstanding hostilities in eastern Ukraine since last year's ceasefire, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) President Peter Maurer said in an interview with Sputnik.

Since April 2014, Kiev has been conducting a military operation against the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, with numerous attempts since to resolve the conflict or, at the very least, end hostilities. International mediators reached a breakthrough last July when they agreed on the measures to maintain peace in the breakaway region.

"And I think we have not seen [any progress] unfortunately, we have not seen the ceasefire holding. We have seen more violence happening along the contact line. It is fortunately not as bad as it was before the ceasefire but it is worse than during the ceasefire," Maurer said on the sidelines of the 9th Moscow Conference on International Security (MCIS).

The humanitarian situation in Donbas remains precarious, he said, noting that the ICRC has not seen any real progress either in Eastern Ukraine or in Kiev's relations with the breakaway republics of Luhansk and Donetsk.

"I see a lot of opportunities to seize but the parties have to seize them. At the present moment, I do not see them really moving forward. So diplomatically, we need to get out of the stalemate," Maurer concluded.

Commenting on the organization's achievements, the president said that the ICRC had made some progress in Donetsk in terms of access and engagement with the authorities. The organization, in particular, has advanced technically to create conditions for people to have better services, including water, electricity and healthcare services. But no improvements have been seen in Luhansk.

"The critical issues of the movement [of people], fluidity and permission of movement of population, access to detainees, eventually, also negotiations that would lead to the exchange and liberation of those still detained, these are all issues which are in the hands of the parties," he said.

This year's MCIS gathered defense officials and experts from nearly 50 countries. The forum ran from June 22-24.