Russia’s initiative on the ways of curbing the internal political conflict in Ukraine is beginning to translate into life, Andrei Klimov, Chairman of the Foreign Policy Committee at the Federation Council — the upper house of Russian parliament — said Wednesday.
The crucial thing now is for the Kiev government to keep up its positive outlook of ceasefire proposals and to resist provocations by the “party of war”, he said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko had a telephone conversation, in the course of which they expressed opinions on the steps that might lead up to a truce between the Ukrainian military and the East-Ukrainian self-defense forces.
“We sent our proposals to him (Poroshenko) before he was elected President — both at the top level and via other channels but he obviously was led by his American superiors and was afraid of making a wrong step,” Andrei Klimov said. “And his patrons pinned big hopes on a blitzkrieg. And when it failed to take place they needed some room where to retreat.”
“In addition to this, Poroshenko has called an early parliamentary election where he has to show himself off as a hero,” he said. “And how can you be a hero in a situation where mothers are getting coffins with their sons’ bodies?”
“In this situation, Poroshenko sees a compromise option of some kind,” Klimov said. “His Western supervisors might have given consent to it because they understand how vulnerable his position is.”