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Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to temporarily recognize passports issued by the de-facto authorities of the occupied areas in eastern Ukraine violates the Minsk peace agreement, a German government spokesman said on Monday, according to Reuters.
"The recognition of travel documents issued by the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic undermines the unity of Ukraine and is a stark contradiction to all that was agreed in Minsk and is therefore totally unacceptable," Steffen Seibert said during a regular government news conference in Berlin, as reported by Reuters.
Read alsoOSCE: Russian recognition of "DPR"/"LPR" IDs undermines Ukraine peace efforts – mediaA foreign ministry spokesman added that German authorities would not recognize the documents.
Putin ordered Russian authorities on February 18 to temporarily recognize civil registration documents issued in separatist-held areas of eastern Ukraine, a decision also strongly criticized by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.