Russia hopes coordination in E. Ukraine would support ceasefire

Moscow hoped coordination on the division line between conflicting sides in eastern Ukraine would support the ceasefire regime and the withdrawal of heavy armaments, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Tuesday.

"Hopefully, the division line agreed upon will provide for the so-called silence regime to actually be implemented and the start of heavy arms withdrawal by both sides," Lavrov said during a joint press conference with Belgian Foreign Minister Didier Reynders in Moscow.

Moscow hopes that current ceasefire would help bring the situation in eastern Ukraine back to normal, Lavrov said, calling on Kiev authorities to start a nationwide dialogue on constitutional reform.

"The inability of Ukrainian authorities to begin the long- awaited constitutional process, which is supposed to involve all regions and all political forces in Ukraine, is becoming a pressing problem," Tass news agency quoted Lavrov as saying.

Meanwhile, Lavrov stressed that it was a mistake to think Russia would change its policies on Ukraine under the pressure of sanctions and that Russia will overcome the negative effects of EU sanctions.

Reynders praised Russia for its assistance in the signing of the ceasefire agreement and its contribution to fulfilling the Minsk accords.

"We hope in the near future the ceasefire agreement would be truly implemented for further development of the peaceful settlement," Reynders said.

Reynders also called on the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council of Europe (CoE) to make more efforts to protect human rights and monitor the ceasefire in Ukraine.

Belgium has taken over the chairmanship of the international human rights body, the CoE on Nov. 13.

A ceasefire initiated by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko was established Tuesday within the "day of silence" framework in the combat area, the press service of Kiev government's military operation said in a statement. Enditem