Ukraine will not grant its eastern regions greater autonomy until there is a sustained ceasefire in Donbas, President Petro Poroshenko stated.
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The Ukrainian parliament was supposed to vote this week on legislation to transfer energy to the regions, including the disputed Luhansk and Donetsk regions, as part of last year's agreement between Moscow and Kyiv.
Any attempt to delay the reform threatens to derail the peace process, which has already been under strain. Both Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels have complained of increased violations of the ceasefire since the last truce was established in 2015.
Poroshenko stated that he would not allow lawmakers to cancel the vote on decentralization reforms. At the same time, he expressed his support for parliamentarians who wanted a series of conditions met before the vote takes place.
These include 'a ceasefire and a prolonged period of complete silence. This is something Russia must ensure, and the world must see that this is being implemented', the president told journalists.
Another condition is to provide international observers with unhindered access to the border between Ukraine and Russia and to control troops and armaments in eastern Ukraine.
Following Poroshenko, the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament, Volodymyr Hroisman, confirmed that lawmakers postponed the discussion of the decentralization reform.
'We do not plan to include this issue in the agenda of the parliamentary session this week, - Hroisman said. - We need some additional time for discussions with political parties'.
After a period of relative calm, both sides of the conflict have started to complain about frequent violations of the ceasefire agreement under the Minsk deal. The armed forces of Ukraine and the separatists claim that heavy artillery is being used which was intended for withdrawal.
Another painful issue for Ukraine remains the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula. Nearly 2 years after the capture of Crimea by the Russian Federation, Ukraine has decided to file lawsuits against Russia in international courts. This was also announced by the Ukrainian leader Poroshenko.
According to the president, lawsuits will be filed within the next two weeks.
Additionally, Poroshenko stated that a PACE mission will soon visit the annexed peninsula. Mission representatives are expected to monitor human rights compliance in Crimea and work towards the release of hostages. PACE also intends to discuss a 'road map' for the de-occupation of Crimea.