Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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407. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his views on recent developments in Ukraine, the declaration of a new state of Malorossiya and the efforts that are being made by the international community and the European Union to safeguard the Minsk peace deal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35855/17]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The conflict in eastern Ukraine - now in its fourth year - has resulted in over 10,000 deaths, forced 1.7 million people to flee their homes and left an estimated 3.5 million in need of humanitarian assistance.

Despite numerous commitments to a ceasefire, the security situation in eastern Ukraine remains fragile. While recorded ceasefire violations have decreased in recent weeks, shelling continues with both sides ignoring calls to pull back their heavy weapons from the contact line.

As a result of the ongoing fighting, very little progress has been made in 2017 on implementing the Minsk peace deal.

International efforts to end the conflict are continuing. The OSCE Trilateral Contact Group, which comprises representatives of Russia, Ukraine and the separatists, met most recently on 19 July in Minsk to discuss confidence building measures, including exchange of prisoners and disengagement from the contact line.

The Normandy Format countries (France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine) are also continuing talks to overcome the current impasse. On Monday, Presidents Macron, Merkel, Putin and Poroshenko held a conference call and pledged to re-double efforts to improve the security situation on the ground and move forward on implementing key elements of the Minsk peace deal.

I condemn the recent statement by the leader of the so-called Donetsk People’s Republic regarding the supposed creation of a new entity named “Malorossiya”. I regard the statement as provocative rhetoric which risks undermining the ongoing efforts by the OSCE and the Normandy format to reach a peaceful resolution of the conflict.

The declaration is the latest in a series of negative developments including Russia’s recognition of travel documents illegally issued by the separatists, the adoption of the Russian rouble in separatist-held areas, and expropriation of Ukrainian-owned companies in the Donbas region, all of which run counter to the Minsk agreements.