Non-Fulfillment Of Minsk Agreements Prevents Putin From Meeting With Zelenskyy - Kremlin

PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKIY (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th July, 2021) KAMCHATSKIY, July 4 (Sputnik) - A possible meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is hampered by the fact that the Minsk agreements remain unimplemented, as well as the discrepancy between the latter's self-presentation as a democratic leader and his actual conduct, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Sunday.

During his annual televised Q&A session in late June, the Russian president did not rule out a possible meeting with the Ukrainian colleague despite the existing differences.

"Apart from this main issue of nonfulfillment of the Minsk agreements, there is also the fact that, from the very beginning, President Zelenskyy looked like a very modern, democratic president, who is bringing order and democracy to his country. And, of course, this attitude does not fit the absolutely unprecedented pressure on political opponents, the desire to get rid of his most successful political rivals by starting criminal proceedings," Peskov told the Rossiya 1 broadcaster.

The spokesman added that Zelenskyy's actions do not correspond to the statements, which were made at the beginning of his presidential term.

The implementation of Minsk agreements, adopted by the leaders of the Normandy Four group to stop the war in Donbas and provide a long-term political resolution of the longstanding conflict, has long been a stumbling point in the relations between Moscow and Kiev.

In May, Viktor Medvedchuk, the head of the political council of the Opposition Platform - For Life party and a proponent of having a dialogue with Russia, was placed under house arrest until July 9 on suspicions of treason and embezzlement of national resources in Crimea.