Poroshenko, Putin discuss Donbas conflict

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko had a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 12, reported Dmitry Pyeskov, Putins’s spokesman. Poroshenko outlined his plan to de-escalate the conflict and the two leaders discussed a plan to develop bilateral relations, Pyeskov said. Svyatoslav Tsegolko, Poroshenko’s press secretary, confirmed that the two leaders engaged in a “meaningful and lengthy discussion” on Thursday afternoon, in which they discussed the steps towards a cease-fire and resolving the conflict peacefully. Poroshenko told Putin that it’s unacceptable for tanks to have crossed the border into Ukraine, Tsegolko said.

The Ukrainian government has yet to receive a response from the Russian government on the document drafted on June 8 by the Ukraine-Russia-OSCE contact group, said Andriy Deshchytsia, Ukraine’s foreign minister. The document proposes conceptual approaches to implementing a peace plan for the Donbas conflict, he said. “So far, we’re receiving only increased tension on our eastern border and military support for the separatists from the Russian side,” he said.

Zenon Zawada: We expect the June 12 phone call to be the first of a series of exchanges in the coming months between the two leaders. We don’t see Putin agreeing on a compromise that falls short of autonomous or federal status for the Donbas region, which is unacceptable to Poroshenko. Moreover, Poroshenko is making proposals from a position of weakness, in which the government can’t even control its own border. Therefore, we expect the Russians to continue supporting the Donbas terrorists with one hand, while holding negotiations with the other.

One factor that can hasten a compromise is another round of Western sanctions, which are not yet on the horizon. The only sign of progress in this direction was a tweet by Deshchytsia last night in which he reported that his Polish colleague, Radoslaw Sikorski, and Swedish colleague, Carl Bildt ”agreed that an adequate reaction is needed ASAP” to the tanks and armaments from Russia.