Ukraine announces 'Normandy Format' meeting in Berlin on October 19

October 18, 2016 (UNIAN) Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has agreed to a so-called "Normandy Format" meeting in Berlin on October 19, bringing together Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine for talks on the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine, a statement said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. Fighting between Ukrainian troops and Russian-backed rebels has killed more than 9,600 since 2014, despite a ceasefire agreed in the Belarussian capital Minsk, as reported by Reuters. Poroshenko agreed to the talks during a phone call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, the statement said. "The heads of states agreed to have a Normandy Four meeting in Berlin on October 19 in order to put pressure on Russia to fulfill security package of Minsk agreements," it said.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Russian president's press secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Monday that Russia was still committed to the Minsk agreements on the Ukrainian settlement but there was little chance for a meeting between the Normandy Four leaders on October 19.