PACE urges Russia to stop supporting militants in Donbass
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) called on the Russian Federation to stop supporting militants in Donbass, as reported on the official website of PACE.
“Adopting a draft resolution, based on the report prepared by Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania) the Committee called on all member States ‘to use their joint political efforts to put an end to this conflict and the sufferings of the civil population,’” the report said.
It was stated that all sides of the war should “release and exchange all prisoners of war and people captured during the war.”
PACE called on the Russian authorities to “stop all financial and military support to illegal armed groups in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, ensure respect for human rights and security of all people living in the annexed Crimea, and ensure unhindered access of international organizations to the territory of the occupied Crimea.”
PACE also called on Ukraine to amend their Criminal Code in accordance with the provisions of international humanitarian law.
“Ukrainian authorities should bring the Criminal Code in line with the provisions of international humanitarian law, adopt legislation on humanitarian demining actions and revise the Law on humanitarian assistance to facilitate the procedure of delivery of humanitarian assistance to the war affected territories,” the report said.
PACE will discuss the draft resolution at its next plenary meeting in Strasbourg on January 22-26, 2018.
In the summer of 2015, the former so-called “Defense Minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic” Igor Girkin told the Russian media that the project “Novorossiya” is over, and the heads of the Donetsk and Luhansk separatists are ready to flee to Russia.
He also said that without Russian support of the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics, Ukraine would be able to win back Donbass in three days.