The long-awaited agreement for the bilateral truce in south-eastern Ukraine has been signed. The agreement was closed today in Minsk by representatives of the Ukrainian authorities and pro-Russian separatists.
The announcement came first from Russian sources following the Contact Group negotiations, then it was confirmed via Twitter by pro-Russian rebels. According to sources cited by the Russian news agency Interfax, the truce must start at 18 pm in Russia, then 16 pm in Italy.
The agreement, signed with the signing of a 14-point protocol, ensures peace in the tormented south-eastern part of the former Soviet country after five months of conflict. Kiev immediately pointed out that, having reached the agreement, the Russians must withdraw. And Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has appealed to the US and the EU to guarantee the ceasefire.
"We won't be able to deal with Russia alone, we need guarantees," Yatsenyuk said during a government meeting in the Ukrainian capital, moments before the separatists announced the agreement.
Meanwhile, the NATO summit has approved the new Alliance response plan, which includes an immediate intervention force with five storage bases divided between the Baltic countries, Poland and Romania. It will be a "very reactive" structure, with "a continuous presence". This was announced by secretary Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
