Prisoner Swap In Donbas Impossible Until Revision Of Election Rules - LPR Representative

Prisoner Swap in Donbas Impossible Until Revision of Election Rules - LPR Representative

LUHANSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 17th September, 2020) A new exchange of prisoners in Donbas is impossible until Ukraine's unicameral parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, brings the election resolution in line with the Minsk agreements, Olga Kobtseva, a representative of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People's Republic (LPR) in the humanitarian subgroup, told reporters.

The Trilateral Contact Group on Donbas met Wednesday by videoconference. The next meeting is scheduled for September 30.

"The exchange is impossible without bringing the resolution of the Verkhovna Rada on local elections into line with the Minsk agreements. How will we exchange prisoners if this resolution crosses out the Minsk agreements? This is the stumbling block that does not allow further progress in the negotiation process," Kobtseva said.

Earlier, the Ukrainian parliament set regular local elections for October 25, but they will not take place on the territory of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions not controlled by Kiev. According to the adopted resolution, elections in these territories can take place, in particular, after the withdrawal of all "armed units" and the transfer of control over the Ukrainian-Russian border.

In July, Russia's envoy to the Contact Group, Boris Gryzlov, said the decision of the Verkhovna Rada to hold local elections contradicted the Minsk agreements.