© Michael Sohn
Embassy of Ukraine in Berlin, Germany. of the Ukraine in Berlin, Germany. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)
The representatives of Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France agreed to meet again in March to discuss the Ukrainian crisis, after a first meeting with “difficult” discussions, the German government announced on Friday.
The delegates of the four countries, which since 2014 make up a dialogue group known as the “Normandy” format devoted to the peace process in eastern Ukraine, met on Thursday in Berlin for nine and a half hours.
“These discussions were difficult and made it possible to highlight the different positions and the different options for a solution”, indicated sources of the diplomacy of Germany and France.
This meeting took place amid growing tensions with Russia, accused by Westerners of posting troops on the border with Ukraine to launch a new operation against the neighboring country.
Russia denies these accusations and assures that it is only seeking guarantees for its security and to prevent NATO from continuing to expand towards its borders.
This format of mediation between Russia and Ukraine managed by Germany and France led to the 2015 Minsk agreements, but both Kiev and Moscow accuse each other of violating the pact.
After a pause of several months, the dialogue between these countries was relaunched in Paris at the end of January, within the framework of diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the crisis in Ukraine.
The four countries will meet again in March after a meeting between Russia, Ukraine and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), another body known as the Trilateral Contact Group.