Ukraine to Consider Bill on Special Status Territories on Tuesday

In compliance with the Minsk agreements, the Parliament of Ukraine will consider a bill on the special status of eastern Ukrainian territories.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The parliament of Ukraine will consider Tuesday a bill to grant special status to regions of eastern Ukraine controlled by self-proclaimed authorities, Ukrainian Parliament Speaker Volodymyr Groysman said Monday.

On Saturday, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko submitted a bill to the parliament that outlines the boundaries of particular districts in the breakaway eastern regions that could be granted "special status" within Ukraine.

"In compliance with the Minsk agreements, the parliament should consider a decree and amendments to the bill on the special status of local administration, defining the borders of Donbas territories to which the special status will be applicable," Groysman wrote on his Facebook page.

A law granting "special status" to parts of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics was introduced by Kiev in the fall of 2014, following peace talks in the Belarusian capital Minsk. However, it was abolished shortly after.

The most recent Minsk talks on Ukrainian reconciliation resulted in a number of agreements aimed at deescalating tensions in the country. The deal is specifically aimed at devolving powers to local authorities and amending the constitution with the end goal of decentralizing Ukraine. The agreement also stipulated Donbas receiving special status as part of constitutional reform on the decentralization of power in Ukraine.

Poroshenko signed a decree to establish a commission to amend the country's constitution earlier in March.