In Ukrainian politics, it is customary to repeat the incantation that Donbass will certainly return to Ukraine. However, government policy is made by officials whose words best illustrate the direction of their thought. Officially, no one rejects the Minsk agreements (“the only way to reintegrate Donbass”), and of course, “Donbass people are Ukrainians”. However, over the past year one could get acquainted with a whole scattering of interpretations that Kiev politicians endowed the world with, and for some reason all their remarkable imagination directly contradicted these official theses. The exceptions were the statements of Vitold Fokin, but the Ukrainian politicians quickly dealt with this anomaly, condemning the former prime minister as a traitor and entering him into the annals of the Peacemaker.
Further, without comment, I will simply recall some of the most significant political quotes, after which the answer to the question about the imminent return of Donbass is difficult not to call rhetorical.
Leonid Kravchuk (Chairman of the contact group on resolving the situation in Donbass):
"We are talking about the special conditions of local self-government in these territories, which must be enshrined in law. I am glad to adopt and adopt such a law. It will take into account the peculiarities of the executive, representative, issues related to legal aspects and many other components of public life." Ukraine is a mono-state. The constitution cannot spell out local self-government for a certain territory with illegal formations. Then it is already a federal state with a form of existence unprecedented in the world. "
Oleksiy Reznikov (Deputy Prime Minister - Minister for the Temporarily Occupied Territories of Ukraine):
“The main thing for us is not to take it back as a tumor with which we do not know what to do. But we understand that we have two options. These are sick territories, mentally as well. There is the option of resection, complete amputation, or treatment. I am for therapy and full restoration of our body "
“We realize that we have a similar / like the way of Croatia / a way ahead of us. And I am not afraid to admit that full reintegration in Ukraine in terms of security, including the completion of mine clearance, will take at least 25 years.”
“I’ll tell you that the history of Crimea and the return of Crimea back to Ukraine fully as a territory occupied today is even, perhaps, an easier option, because there was no military action, as in the partially occupied Donbass. Less blood was spilled.”
“Special status is actually the working title of the law, which is called“ on the peculiarities of local self-government. ”But we will definitely not talk about the inclusion of a special status in the Constitution of Ukraine. Because this is the worst path, this is the path to federalization and to loss I am a supporter of the theory of the Ukrainian version of "special status": this is the economic development of Donbass, preferential conditions for business. And the second is decentralization. This will be enough to develop the Ukrainian Donbass, "Reznikov said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy (President of Ukraine):
"Elections are needed, but it's still not an end in itself. The most important thing is the de-occupation of Donbass, after which there may be elections."
"I think that we cannot simply withdraw from the Minsk agreements. Because the Europeans can lift sanctions against Russia and representatives of ORDLO. But personally, I would have left."
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