DISINFO: Minsk agreements confirm there is a civil war in Ukraine
SUMMARY
The Minsk agreements, which is truly the only document recognised by the entire international community, because it is endorsed at the level of the UN Security Council, says that this is an internal conflict in Ukraine. There is never a single word about Russia, only in the context that it is the guarantor of the implementation of the Minsk agreements.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative that targets the Minsk agreements and justifies Russia's involvement in the war in Ukraine. The Minsk agreements (the 2014 memorandum and 2015 plan of action) is the roadmap to the stabilisation of the situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Donetsk and Luhansk. It is true that both documents do not mention Russia as a side involved in the war, however, the documents do not mention the sides whatsoever. There is no clause in the Minsk agreements that defines the conflict as "internal". On the contrary, the Minsk agreements (paragraph 10) state clearly the need to withdraw “all foreign armed formations, military equipment, as well as mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine under the monitoring of the OSCE.” Previous investigations prove Russia's involvement in the war in East Ukraine. International observers have collected evidence confirming the participation of Russia’s armed forces in the battles in Donbas, the supply of weapons as well as other support to the mercenaries. The Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court stated that “the information available suggests that the situation within the territory of Crimea and Sevastopol amounts to an international armed conflict between Ukraine and the Russian Federation". This international armed conflict began at the latest on 26 February 2014 when the Russian Federation deployed members of its armed forces to gain control over parts of Ukrainian territory without the consent of the Ukrainian Government. The European Union stated in July 2014 that "arms and fighters continue to flow into Ukraine from the Russian Federation". At the NATO Summit in Wales in September 2014, and at successive summits since then, allied leaders also demanded that Russia refrain from aggressive actions against Ukraine and stop fomenting tension along and across the Ukrainian border.