"Ukraine's accession to NATO would be a fateful error," Gentiloni said when asked whether Russian President Vladimir Putin can be allowed to influence Ukraine’s foreign policy choices, particularly, its choice regarding NATO membership.
He said the new agreement in Minsk is based on mutual concessions, which will help avoid "dangerous drift" towards the radicalization of the conflict.
According to the Italian minister, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande together made a contribution to the new agreement in Minsk, achieving something that Italy has always sought – bringing the conflict back to the diplomatic track.
"Let's look at the facts: we have an agreement of 12 items. Some of them support one side, some – the other,” Gentiloni said.
“This agreement is built on the concessions.”
Gentiloni said there currently there are still many problems that remain unsolved, and there is no guarantee that "this agreement has opened a new stage in settlement of the crisis."
As UNIAN reported earlier, on February 12 the leaders of Ukraine, France, Russia and Germany agreed during talks in Minsk on a complete ceasefire in the Donbas, a weapons withdrawal, and the exchange of prisoners.
