What is the Minsk Agreement and why did Putin say it no longer exists?

Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered Russian troops into eastern Ukraine late Monday after recognizing the independence of the separatist-controlled Donetsk People’s Republic and Luhansk People’s Republic.

He hinted that a wider military campaign could be coming in days and laid claim to the rest of Ukraine as a country “created by Russia.”

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On Tuesday, he told reporters that a set of agreements designed to end a separatist war in eastern Ukraine no longer exists.

In September 2014, Ukraine officials and leaders of the separatists agreed to the set of conditions in an effort to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine that had been sparked after protesters deposed a pro-Russian president months earlier.

The 12-point agreement became known as the Minsk Agreement because it had been negotiated in Minsk, Belarus.

The agreement included a ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy weapons and delivery of humanitarian aid.

However, both sides broke the agreement and the fighting continued.

A year later, a second set of accords — Minsk II — was agreed upon and included 13 points of compromise.

The second agreement aimed to set out a way to reintegrate the separatist regions into Ukraine with conditions that would give Russia some influence over Ukrainian national politics.

The conditions have yet to be implemented. Russia has claimed since the agreement was signed in 2015 that it is not part of the agreement and does not have to abide by its terms.

On Tuesday, Putin underlined that stance when he said the agreement no longer exists.

Here is a look at the agreements that were signed in 2014 and 2015.

Minsk I

The 12 points of the agreement include:

1. Ensuring an immediate bilateral ceasefire.
2. Ensuring the monitoring and verification of the ceasefire by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
3. Decentralization of power, including through the adoption of the Ukrainian law “On temporary Order of Local Self-Governance in Particular Districts of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts.”
4. Ensuring the permanent monitoring of the Ukrainian-Russian border and verification by the OSCE with the creation of security zones in the border regions of Ukraine and the Russian Federation.
5. Immediate release of all hostages and illegally detained persons.
6. A law preventing the prosecution and punishment of people in connection with the events that had taken place in some areas of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.
7. Continuing inclusive national dialogue.
8. Taking measures to improve the humanitarian situation in Donbas.
9. Ensuring early local elections according to the Ukrainian law “On temporary Order of Local Self-Governance in Particular Districts of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts.”
10. Withdrawing illegal armed groups and military equipment, as well as fighters and mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine.
11. Adopting a program of economic recovery and reconstruction for the Donbas region.
12. Providing personal security for participants in the consultations.

Minsk II

The 13 points of the second agreement include:

1. Immediate and full ceasefire.
2. Pull-out of all heavy weapons by both sides to equal distance with the aim of creating a security zone.
3. Effective monitoring and verification of ceasefire regime and pullout of heavy weapons by OSCE.
4. A dialogue is to start on modalities of conducting local elections according to Ukrainian legislation and the Law of Ukraine.
5. Providing pardons and amnesty for persons in relation to events that took place in particular districts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts of Ukraine.
6. Providing release and exchange of all hostages and illegally held persons.
7. Providing safe access, delivery, storage and distribution of humanitarian aid.
8. Defining the modalities of a full restoration of social and economic connections.
9. Restoring control of the state border to the Ukrainian government in the whole conflict zone.
10. Pullout of all foreign armed formations, military equipment, and mercenaries from the territory of Ukraine under OSCE supervision. Disarmament of all illegal groups.
11. Constitutional reform in Ukraine, with a new constitution to come into effect by the end of 2015, the key element of which is decentralization, and also the approval of permanent legislation on the special status of particular districts of Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts.
12. Based on the Law of Ukraine “On temporary Order of Local Self-Governance in Particular Districts of Donetsk and Luhansk Oblasts,” questions related to local elections will be discussed and agreed upon.
13. Intensifying the work of the Trilateral Contact Group, including through the establishment of working groups on the implementation of relevant aspects of the Minsk agreements. They will reflect the composition of the Trilateral Contact Group.

Why did Putin say the agreements no longer exist?

Putin has never abided by the agreements, saying Russia was not a party to the agreements and is not bound by them.

Part of the Minsk II called for the Kremlin-backed separatist territories in the Donbas to be granted special status, giving the area a level of autonomy, while continuing to recognize them as part of Ukraine. However, Ukraine and Russia could never agree on how that part of the agreement would work.

In a speech announcing his decision to recognize the separatist region, Putin said that “Ukraine for us is not just a neighboring country. It is an integral part of our own history, culture, spiritual space.”

He also claimed that Ukraine has “never had a tradition of genuine statehood” and that “Ukraine was entirely created by Russia, more precisely Bolshevik communist Russia.”

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