German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has warned against the escalation of the situation in the east of Ukraine and called for strict compliance with the Minsk agreements.
He said this on Monday during his visit to Astana (Kazakhstan), according to the German television channel n-tv.
"Unfortunately, the situation [in the east of Ukraine] is again very serious. Now we have to be very careful so as not to return to a state of military confrontation which we thought has already been overcome," he said.
The German diplomat urged the conflicting sides, including Russia, to return to the implementation of the Minsk agreements. "I now think that we must call upon all those involved in this conflict, as well as the Russian side, to return again to the terms of the Minsk protocol," he said.
Steinmeier said that tonight plans to discuss the situation in eastern Ukraine with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini.