VIENNA, November 4 (RIA Novosti) — UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called the elections in self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics (DPR, LPR) "unfortunate and counterproductive" development and urged the sides of the conflict in the southeast of Ukraine to deliver on the Minsk agreements.
"The elections in the eastern part of the country this past Sunday are an unfortunate and counterproductive development. I urge all concerned to urgently recommit to full implementation of the letter and spirit of the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum, designed to bring peace and stability to all of Ukraine," Ban Ki-moon said Tuesday during his address to the OSCE Permanent Council.
He added that apart from the "tragedy of lost lives both on land and in the sky", the Ukrainian crisis is also "jeopardizing our collective ability to solve global problems".
The crisis in Ukraine's eastern regions escalated when Kiev authorities launched a military operation against independence supporters in eastern Ukraine in mid-April.
This political discontent saw the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, also known as Donbas, declare themselves people's republics, which later formed the union of Novorossiya.
Following months of bloodshed, the warring sides signed a ceasefire agreement on September 5 in Minsk.
On November 2, DPR and LPR held elections for the heads of local government and representatives of the legislative bodies, which Kiev has called illegitimate.
Russia, however, has emphasized that not recognizing the results of the elections in Donbas would run counter to the Minsk protocol and undermine efforts to establish peace in the country.
