Ukraine crisis: Leaders agree peace roadmap

Rebels are surrounding Ukrainian government troops in the flashpoint town of Debaltseve

An agreement aimed at ending the fighting in Ukraine has been reached, following marathon talks in Belarus.

The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France announced that a ceasefire would begin on 15 February.

The deal also includes weapon withdrawals and prisoner exchanges, but key issues remain to be settled.

The pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine have signed the agreement. Thousands of people have died in almost a year of fighting in the region.

The BBC’s Richard Galpin in Minsk says the deal is very similar to a ceasefire agreed last September, which unravelled very quickly.

The latest agreement includes:

• Ceasefire to begin at 00:01 local time on 15 February
• Heavy weapons to be withdrawn, beginning on 16 February and completed in two weeks
• All prisoners to be released; amnesty for those involved in fighting
• Withdrawal of all foreign troops and weapons from Ukrainian territory. Disarmament of all illegal groups
• Ukraine to allow resumption of normal life in rebel areas, by lifting restrictions
• Constitutional reform to enable decentralisation for rebel regions by the end of 2015
• Ukraine to control border with Russia if conditions met by the end of 2015

Key unresolved issues include the status of Debaltseve, a government-held town surrounded by rebels that has been the focus of fierce fighting in recent days.

Further talks will also be held on self-rule in parts of Donetsk and Luhansk separatist regions.

‘Glimmer of hope’

French President Francois Hollande said he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel would ask their European Union partners to support the deal at a summit in Brussels on Thursday.

Ms Merkel said there was now a “glimmer of hope” but big hurdles remained, while Mr Hollande said “the coming hours will be decisive”.

EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said European leaders would be discussing ways to “help and sustain the agreement”, but she ruled out the threat of fresh sanctions on Russia.

“I think today the issue is not going to be discussion of further sanctions… but rather positive ways the EU can contribute to make this first step just one of many others,” she told reporters in Brussels.

BBC