MOSCOW, Feb. 20 - RIA Novosti. Belarus can not participate in the UN peacekeeping mission in the Donbass because of membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), said Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Elena Zerkal.

"As far as I know, Belarus has not left the CSTO and is a member of this organization, and if we exclude NATO participation in the mission of the countries, it is very logical that they do not say that the CSTO countries take part in this mission," the Ukrainian diplomat said.

The offer of Minsk

Earlier, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry noted that Minsk is ready to discuss the deployment of the peacekeeping contingent in the conflict zone.

According to the head of the Belarusian diplomacy Vladimir Makei, this issue was discussed with the US Department of State's special representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker "on the margins" of the Munich Security Conference. The diplomat also noted that Belarus is ready to participate in this process in any format, if this is acceptable for all parties involved in this conflict.

Makey stressed that the Russian and Ukrainian sides need to come to a compromise in order to bring together positions on the introduction of peacekeepers in the Donbass.

"We see now that there are big differences in the positions of the parties, so the task is to bring these positions closer together and perhaps find some compromise solution," the Belarusian Foreign Minister said.

President Alexander Lukashenko, in turn, spoke about the negative impact of the conflict in the east of Ukraine on Belarus. According to him, Minsk is interested in an early settlement of the conflict.

"We are interested in the fact that this conflict, <...> the fire to extinguish, that this all ended quickly, stopped," said the head of state.

According to him, about 160 thousand Ukrainian immigrants arrived in Belarus as a result of the conflict in the east of Ukraine.

"I provided equal conditions for all Belarusians: free health care, free education, public utilities - everything is like in Belarus, you think it cost us cheap?" But the people were in trouble, "the president stressed.
Lukashenka also complained that the flow of weapons, explosives from the territory of Ukraine ". This state of affairs, as noted by the country's leader, required decisions to strengthen border security.

"We are negotiating with Poroshenko, so that they, for their part, will do their part of the work, they are very lagging behind." I could do this for 10-12 years, and in three years I need to do this do it, "Lukashenka said.

He also spoke about "diplomatic and political influence" on Belarus because of the conflict in the Donbass.

"How to isolate yourself from this in the era of the global Internet?" - Asks Lukashenka.

He also noted the moral side of the conflict.

And then, our brothers fight, brother against brother went. Is it normal? I can not look at it calmly, "the president of the country concluded.

The Swedish Initiative

Earlier, Swedish Defense Minister Peter Huttlequist announced the possibility of introducing Swedish troops to Donbass.

The head of the country's defense ministry asked whether Sweden fears that the troops will be close to the Russian border, said that while the issue of the introduction of peacekeepers has not been resolved: the proposal of Ukraine and Russia on the peacekeeping contingent is very different, therefore the minister preferred "not build guesswork. "

The Swedish troops, according to the official, will only support the United Nations mission.

UN peacekeepers

Earlier, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed support for the idea of ​​introducing a UN peacekeeping contingent to the east of Ukraine, provided that the mission will ensure the security of OSCE personnel.

In turn, the Ukrainian side proposes to deploy peacekeepers throughout the Donbas, including the territories adjacent to the Russian border.

Thus, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Pavel Klimkin, expressed confidence that the peacekeeping mission should cover the entire territory of the Donbass, but in any case, the introduction of peacekeepers will depend on the decision of the Russian president, as well as on determining the format for deployment of the peacekeeping contingent. At the same time, according to the head of Ukrainian diplomacy, the peacekeeping mission will take about six to nine months.

The Ukrainian authorities launched a military operation against the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, which, after a coup in the country in February 2014, declared independence. According to the UN, more than ten thousand people died during the conflict.

The issue of resolving the situation in the Donbass is discussed, including during the meetings in Minsk of the contact group, which since September, 2014 has already adopted three documents regulating the steps to de-escalate the conflict. However, after reaching agreements on a truce between the parties to the conflict, fighting continues.

Link: https://ria.ru/world/20180220/1514960417.html