Madrid calls on Kyiv to give greater autonomy to breakaway regions - Spanish Foreign Ministry
MOSCOW. Feb 9 (Interfax) - All parties to the Minsk agreements must implement them, including the authorities in Kyiv, which must give greater autonomy to Ukraine's breakaway regions, Spanish Foreign Ministry's State Secretary for Foreign Affairs Ignacio Ybanez has said.
"We also support those points of the Minsk agreements that say that Kyiv, the Ukrainian authorities must give more autonomy to the country's breakaway regions," Ybanez said at a meeting with the head of the Federation Council Committee on International Affairs, Konstantin Kosachyov, in Moscow on Tuesday.
"We confirm, both here and within the European Union, that Kyiv, the Ukrainian authorities, too, should be required to implement their part of the Minsk agreements regarding the provision of greater rights and powers to the regions," he said.
At a meeting with Russian Foreign Ministry officials, the Spanish delegation also stressed the need for implementation of the Minsk agreements by all parties, in which case it will be possible to go further, towards gradual lifting of the anti-Russian sanctions, the diplomat said.
As to the situation around Crimea, Spain's position consists in the need to respect the laws of states, as well as international law, Ybanez said.
"And it is based on this respect for the internal laws of States and international law that we consider the annexation of Crimea illegal from the international point of view," he said.
He noted, however, that on the Kosovo issue both Russia and Spain took the same stance, and thanked Russia for solidarity on the situation with Catalonia.
