Verkhovna Rada votes for the bill on Donbass reintegration

The Verkhovna Rada voted for the bill on Donbass reintegration today, January 18, RIA Novosti reports. It took three days to adopt the law introduced by Petro Poroshenko. The document supported 280 people (the required minimum is 206).

Now law is pending signature of the President of Ukraine. It will come into force on the day following its publication.

As Russkiy Mir reported earlier, the bill recognizes Donbass as “occupied territories”, and labels Russia an "occupier." Aside of threat the bill doesn't mention any Minsk agreements. The law will allow Ukrainian authorities to use its army in a peace-time setting.

As we reported earlier, Ukrainian parliamentarians didn't support either the proposal on breaking of diplomatic relations with Russia, or amendment recognizing The Donetsk and Luhansk self-proclaimed people's republics as "terrorist organizations.”

According to Aleksander Zakharchenko, the Prime Minister of the self-proclaimed state Donetsk People's Republic, the document contradicts the Minsk agreements. Zakharchenko said, that Kiev doesn't want to follow peaceful resolution of the current situation, inctead, Ukrainian authorities are ste for a war.

Acting Luhansk People's Republic MFA Vladimir Deinego agrees with his colleague. The adopted law “breaks the logics of Minsk process”, he stated in interview with RT Channel. Deinego hopes that despite the “provocative law” the work under the Minsk-2 agreements to be continued.

Russkiy Mir