REUTERS

U.S. Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, Ambassador Jonathan Cohen has said it is Russia that must end the conflict by withdrawing its troops from eastern Ukraine and Crimea.

Read alsoEU stresses need to agree on additional measures for sustainable ceasefire in Donbas

"It is Russia that must end this conflict by withdrawing its troops from eastern Ukraine and Crimea," he said at a UN Security Council meeting on February 12 on the fourth anniversary of the signing of the Minsk agreements.

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"The United States does not and will not support the Kremlin's purported annexation of Crimea or anything less than full restoration of Ukraine's control over its territory," he said, emphasizing that the Donbas-related sanctions will stay in place until such changes are made.

"The United States stands with the European Union and others against the Russian Federation's unacceptable conduct in Crimea, eastern Ukraine and the Black Sea," Cohen stressed, calling upon Moscow to respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, extending to its territorial waters.