OSCE Envoy on Eastern Ukraine Crisis Says Economic Subgroup Should Be Revived

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) trilateral group on the Ukrainian crisis should resume the economic aspect of its work, OSCE representative Martin Sajdik told Sputnik.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The contact group, comprising representatives of Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE, was formed in 2014 in an effort to promote direct dialogue between Ukraine’s conflicting parties. Establishment of subgroups on political, economic, humanitarian and security matters was stipulated by the Minsk peace agreements, negotiated in 2015 by the leaders of Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany.

“From my point of view, yes,” Sajdik said Wednesday when asked if the Trilateral Contact Group’s economic subgroup should be revived. “We try hard, as you see, for instance, with this water crisis, to nevertheless come to solutions, because we have to deal with this issue.”

Earlier Wednesday, Sajdik told reporters that the contact group is pushing all parties to the Minsk accord to proceed with a final peace deal by year’s end.

Pointing out that the group will have its final meeting of 2016 next week, the Austrian diplomat said, “We just cannot finish the year without at least some results that convince the people that this process in Minsk is further necessary."

He asserted that despite continued tensions in parts of the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donbas and Lugansk, progress toward security has been made.

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