REUTERS

"The Russian Federation Armed Forces Colonel-General at the JCCC [the Joint Centre for Control and Co-ordination] presented letters from members of both the "Donetsk People's Republic" ("DPR") and "Lugansk People's Republic" ("LPR") that were sent to SMM, stating their intention to parade heavy weapons as part of Victory Day commemorations on 9 May," the OSCE SMM said on April 22 in its daily update for April 21.

"The SMM stressed that such action would be in violation of Minsk agreements, as outlined by the SMM Chief Monitor in his letter of 10 April to the signatories of the Minsk Package," the update reads.

As UNIAN reported earlier, on February 12, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President François Hollande held talks in Minsk to resolve the conflict in Donbas.

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Following the talks, the parties approved a package of measures aimed at the implementation of the Minsk agreements of September 2014. In addition, the leaders of Ukraine, France, Germany and the Russian Federation adopted a declaration in support of these measures.

In addition to other provisions of the new agreements reached by the 'Normandy Four' leaders on February 12, the parties agreed on a ceasefire to be effective from 0001, February 15, as well as the withdrawal of all heavy weapons. The agreements also provide for the release and exchange of all prisoners of war and civil hostages.

Despite the fact that a ceasefire was supposed to come into force, the militants have continued to attack the positions of the Ukrainian armed forces throughout the territory of Donbas, Ukraine's military says.