Failed Ukraine peace deal leaving millions displaced, thousands dead, says UN

Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in early 2014 and support for separatist rebels in the east triggered a conflict with Ukrainian government forces before striking an agreement in 2015

Russia and Ukraine blame each other for the failure to implement the agreement signed in 2015 in the Belarus capital, Minsk

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Ukrainain seviceman attends a military drills near Urzuf village not far from the city of Mariupol as Ukraine's president imposed martial law in border regions with Russia. Photo: AFP

Published: 2:41pm, 13 Feb 2019Updated: 2:42pm, 13 Feb 2019

A 2015 agreement to bring peace to Ukraine’s volatile east remains largely unimplemented and civilians are paying the highest price, with more than 3,300 killed and 3.5 million needing humanitarian aid this year, UN officials said Tuesday.

Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in early 2014 and support for separatist rebels in the east triggered a conflict with Ukrainian government forces that the UN says has also injured up to 9,000 civilians and displaced 1.5 million people.

Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca told the Security Council that negotiations “appear to have lost momentum”, with Russia and Ukraine unable or unwilling to agree on key steps forward or too distracted to focus on implementing the 2015 agreement.

People listen to President Vladimir Putin during a rally and a concert celebrating the fourth anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea at Manezhnaya Square in Moscow in March 2018. Photo: AFP

Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia and Ukrainian Ambassador Volodymyr Yelchenko blamed each other for the failure to implement the agreement signed in the Belarus capital, Minsk.

Jenca, who is in charge European affairs, stressed that the conflict in eastern Ukraine is not dormant. “It is a conflict in the heart of Europe which continues to claim victims,” he said.