Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko / Photo by UNIAN

The president said that Ukraine was and  remains a staunch supporter of a peaceful resolution to the conflict in the east of Ukraine, but that the Minsk Protocol was not being observed by the militants that control some districts of Ukraine’s eastern Luhansk and Donetsk regions.

"Unfortunately, the other parties to the Minsk agreements are not fulfilling their obligations. This concerns the ceasefire, the establishment of a buffer zone, the commitments given for the immediate release of all hostages, the pullback of heavy artillery, the blocking of the Ukrainian-Russian border and restoring Ukraine’s control over this part of border. There has been no progress in any of these areas," Poroshenko said.