Newsroom24x7 Desk

Washington D.C : German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko spoke to media after their meeting in Chancellery in Berlin, Germany. America has spoken in its tone of insistence, when Washington DC spokesperson John Kirby expressed what America expects from this Minsk agreement.

Welcoming the meet of Merkel, Hollande and Poroshenko in Berlin, Kirby sounded optimistic about the three leaders and their ongoing, shared commitment to full implementation of Minsk agreements. But he expressed concerns about violence in eastern Ukraine. US analysis continues to show, said Kirby, that it is the combined Russian-separatist forces and not Ukrainian forces which are initiating aggressive activities. As Ukraine’s military posture stays defensive, America firmly rejects Russia’s efforts to point to Ukraine as the aggressor, added he.

Kirby went on to state that there is no indication if Ukraine intends to conduct or is undertaking preparations for offensive operations in its own country or in eastern Ukraine. Kirby however commended the ongoing efforts made by Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in facilitating Minsk implementation. He strongly rejected the separatist attacks and said that US disliked the pressure on OSCE monitors and calls upon Russia and the separatists to end violence and begin full implementation of Minsk agreements, including ensuring safety and full access for OSCE monitors.

Asked by a reporter on Foreign Minister Lavrov’s statement connected to restoring bilateral communication channels that were frozen by United States, and whether US intends to reopen these channels, Kirby suggested that there are areas where US cooperates with Russia. The Iran deal being one of them, Syria and a way forward for a political transition being another, yet there are areas where US disagrees.

Not having any specific statement on it, Kirby referred to John Kerry’s commitment and stated that Secretary Kerry has been communicating directly with Foreign Minister Lavrov on a range of issues and hoped that the communication would continue. On an after thought, Kirby reiterated that there are some areas where both parties are going to see progress and work closely together on, and there would be other areas where both will continue to disagree.