COPENHAGEN, 16 February 2015 – OSCE Parliamentary Assembly President Ilkka Kanerva (MP, Finland) today urged all sides in the Ukraine conflict to adhere strictly to the ceasefire and expressed deep concern about the continuation of fighting in areas of eastern Ukraine, particularly around the town of Debaltseve.

“These early days following the agreement of the ceasefire will be critical as to whether or not it will hold. I welcome the news that it has largely held so far, while I deplore the illegal separatists’ false and counterproductive insistence that the deal does not apply to Debaltseve, a government-held town. I call on all sides to fully respect the deal reached in Minsk and not squander this opportunity for peace that took so much effort to reach,” Kanerva said.

President Kanerva recently visited both Kyiv and Moscow for high-level meetings that focused on efforts to resolve the crisis. He met in the Ukrainian capital  with Verkhovna Rada Chair Volodymyr Groysman, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin and others on 6 February. In Moscow, he met with Russian State Duma Chairperson Sergey Naryshkin on 12 February.

The OSCE's response to the crisis in and around Ukraine will be the topic of a special debate at the PA's Winter Meeting, which begins on Wednesday, 18 February in Vienna.

For more information on the Winter Meeting and press registration, click here.