Talk:Minsk agreements

Title
You need to read WP:DAB. We don't disambiguate from things that don't have the same name. We don't have an article entitled "1991 Minsk agreement". RGloucester — ☎ 12:38, 8 September 2014 (UTC)
 * Bravo! Who say, don't edit redirects?! Yes, we have it: 1991 Minsk agreement per . NickSt (talk) 12:43, 8 September 2014 (UTC)
 * Sometimes people need a taste of their own medicine. It isn't called "1991 Minsk agreement". It is called Belavezha Accords, and Minsk Agreement did not even redirect there. Disambiguation is based on the titles of articles, and that article was never titled "Minsk agreement". Regardless, it is a proper noun. Please note that all diplomatic accords/treaties are capitalised and are considered proper nouns. As an example, look at Category:Treaties of Ukraine. They are all capitalised. RGloucester  — ☎ 12:45, 8 September 2014 (UTC)
 * No articles with parethenthesis in this category. NickSt (talk) 12:51, 8 September 2014 (UTC)
 * The Australian press mostly refers to it as Minsk Agreements. I have monitored the topic for a while (my buddy spent some time in Sebastopol in 2017) and had never heard that word Belazheva. People will use names that they know because looking up things with unknown names is very difficult, even worse with names that look alien to the other language, so you cannot remember them. Interestingly, nobody in the Australian press that I have seen has ever mentioned the Protocolls had an expiry date of 21 February 2022, which was 3 days before the tanks rolled. 2001:8003:A070:7F00:CDC0:24AB:9963:7B31 (talk) 12:32, 9 September 2022 (UTC)

Requested move 08 September 2014
Minsk Agreement (2014) → 2014 Minsk agreement – User Glockhester moved this page without consensus and edit redirect to avoid the reverted moving. Not a proper noun. No "Minsk Agreement" in reliable sources. Only "Minsk agreement". Also there was 1991 Minsk agreement in Belarus per. NickSt (talk) 12:47, 8 September 2014 (UTC)

Survey

 * Feel free to state your position on the renaming proposal by beginning a new line in this section with  or  , then sign your comment with  . Since polling is not a substitute for discussion, please explain your reasons, taking into account Wikipedia's policy on article titles.


 * Strong Oppose – Firstly, NickSt shouldn't be one to talk about "moving without consensus", as he already did this with this article and many others. There is no "1991 Minsk agreement". That is a redirect created specifically by NickSt today to link to our article on the Belavezha Accords. Minsk Agreement never linked to that article until today. He did this to justify his disambiguation here, and for no other reason. This title a proper noun (like Belavezha Accords). All such treaties and accords are given proper noun status. Ideally this would be at Minsk Agreement, with no disambiguation, as we have no other article on any other "Minsk Agreement" (this is "unnecessary disambiguation). RGloucester  — ☎ 15:44, 8 September 2014 (UTC)
 * I've taken the liberty of moving this article to Minsk Protocol, as the OSCE refers to the agreement as such. RGloucester  — ☎ 16:43, 15 September 2014 (UTC)

Discussion

 * Any additional comments:

Are we sure that the Protocol was an "agreement"?
Looking more at the protocol, its development and signing, seems like it was only agreed to by Ukraine. Is does not appear to be any more than a statement of Poroshenko's peace plan + an agreement for a ceasefire? Donbass and Luhansk were not involved in writing it, and they never agreed to Poroshenko's peace plan and were consitantly against it. OSCE does not refer to the whole protocol as an "agreement", rather only the ceasefire. http://www.osce.org/cio/123245 Does anyone have any evidence that Donbass and Luhansk agree/agreed to the protocol in enterity? Note that the OSCE did not assure both sides of their support, only Poroshenko. Why? Because, it seems like, it was purely something for Poroshenko to fulfill. This needs to be fixed. Much emphasis has been laid on the protocol as if it was an agreement nutted out by the opposing sides. Certaily not, Donbass and Luhansk were not involved. Looks like this is a distortion commonly reflected in the media (can someone check non-western media, I have only had a breif look) and is not helping bring dialogue and ultimately peace. The two sides never realy met in Minsk. They only agreed to a cease fire - on that basis they put their signature to the protocol (at the time when Poroshenko stated he would abide by the protocol) and later an all for all prisoner swap. PS. I have added some official details to the article.Tobeortobe (talk) 01:26, 14 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Sorry, but there is no "evidence" required. Reliable sources say that it was agreed to, and hence it was. RGloucester  — ☎ 02:15, 14 November 2014 (UTC)
 * You deleted by edits on a false basis. I refer you to the very text of the protacol. In what way are your sources "reliable"? The actual document as published by the OSCE is what I have as a source. If you have sources that state something else then they are not honest and a reasonable person would say unreliable.
 * First of all, you can't copy and paste text from other sources into here. We write in our own words, otherwise that's a copyright violation. Secondly, the text of the Protocol doesn't say anything about what you say it does. It is a primary source. We use secondary sources to ascertain information, and they say that the DPR and LPR signed and agreed to the damn thing. RGloucester  — ☎ 02:35, 14 November 2014 (UTC)
 * OSCE is not the primary source. OSCE is a secondary source. OSCE did not author the document.  As a secondary and trusted source, it confirmed through publishing the text of the authors whom were the parties to the negotiations which OSCE took no part in. Rian Geldenhuys (talk) 07:56, 15 December 2022 (UTC)
 * What copyright violation in providing a translation of the text published by OSCE? Please compare the opening paragraphs of the protocol to that of the memorandum. It is clear that the protocol is not an agreement between the waring parties, while the memorandum is "an understanding".

"...Ukraine, the Russian Federation and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe and representatives of individual regions of Donetsk and Lugansk regions reached an understanding on the following measures to secure agreement on a bilateral cease the use of weapons." In the text of the protacol there was no "agreement" it was not even phrased as an agreement. Your secondary sources likely also claimed that there were weapons of mass desctruction in Iraq... Let's discount any seconday source that does not correlate to the primary source unless they provide hard evidence. Donetsk and Lugansk have never agreed to Poroshenko's peace plan. The protocol is Poroshenko's peace plan, so they never agreed to the protocol. If there is a claim that Donetsk and Lugansk agreed to Proshenko's peace plan then where is the prof supporting this, where is the official statment from Donetsk and Lugansk, a statement from a wester media source is hardly proof.
 * This is plain rubbish. Read WP:RS, and WP:V, please. RGloucester  — ☎ 03:01, 14 November 2014 (UTC)

PS: Tobeortobe, please sign your posts. Not doing so makes it very difficult for anyone trying to follow the conversation to figure out who said what. — TransporterMan  ( TALK ) 15:11, 14 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Thank you for enlightening this fellow. You have much more patience for rubbish than I do. RGloucester  — ☎ 17:48, 14 November 2014 (UTC)
 * "Rubbish"? RGloucester please explain how your comments adhere to WP policy. TransporterMan, thankyou for your input. There is a point here that I think you may have overlooked. Secondary sources "Third party sources" are contradictory. Western media says that the Minsk Protocol stated that the election was to be held in Dec and that it is binding on DPR. Russian media says that the Minsk Protocol does not specify a date and that the protocol was not binding on DPR. These are the official positions of the western and Russian governments. These differing official positions I argue are important to this article. RGloucester is pushing for the Western interpretation to dominate. So I repetedly asked RGloucester to read the actual Protocol, where it is obvious that there is NO date specified. Looking into the matter further we see that the introductory paragraph to the protocol also makes it clear that it is not an agreement, it is simply a statement of Poroshenko's peace plan, something which DPR has never agreed to. Thus getting back to the issue of contradictory secondary sources, in this case the Western media's reporting is a lie and the Russian media is truthful. This is as plain as black and white. Why RGloucester refuses to see this I leave for him to explain.Tobeortobe (talk) 21:24, 16 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Yes, it makes quite a bit of sense that they signed something that they "did not agree to". That's a perfectly sensible phrase! No, it isn't. Reliable sources are clear on this matter. Your WP:OR interpretation of the protocol is irrelevant. You'll note that it says "in line with Ukrainian law". Ukrainian law, i.e. the "law on special status", specified the date. RGloucester  — ☎ 21:29, 16 November 2014 (UTC)
 * You are still refusing to read it? Does it hurt your sensitivities? There is NO mention of any date in the protocol. DPR were witnesses to the Protocol. Yes they signed it, but it contained no obligations on them. RGloucester, I strongly sugest you read the protocol. Once you have then you may be qualified to edit the page. The protocol does not in anyway present itself as an agreement, nor does it have any mention of a date for the elections. It is a statment of intent (or "declaration" but not an agreement between all authors and not an agreement between all signatories) of the Ukrainean Government, they were intending to hold elections in the oblasts according to Ukrainean law. The elections held early November were held by DPR not Ukraine.Tobeortobe (talk) 22:01, 16 November 2014 (UTC)
 * You don't get it. I don't need to read it. My own reading of it is irrelevant. What matters is how it is read by reliable secondary sources, and they read it as an agreement. The OSCE reads as an agreement, and they put the whole damn thing together. Sorry, but your WP:OR bubble is burst. RGloucester  — ☎ 01:03, 17 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Where does the OSCE refer to it as an agreement?180.149.192.134 (talk) 01:29, 17 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Right here, Mr OR IP. RGloucester  — ☎ 01:40, 17 November 2014 (UTC)
 * The question to ask is where in the Protocol is it stated that it is an agreement. Secondly, and a very important question for all who go to WP. What was the understanding of each participant? The views of the DPR and Russia are critically important. This needs to be presented. I think that the readers of WP expect that the editors of this page would have read the protocol. It is only about a page long, I commend it to you. As for your trusted sources, look at how they reported MH17, and the weapons of mass desctruction in Iraq. Tobeortobe (talk) 01:57, 17 November 2014 (UTC)
 * Sorry, should have stated this above, Didier Burkhalter is sadly not neutral, as shown in this very reference which you provide: "Burkhalter made the case for sticking with co-operative security even at this time of heightened tension and said that sanctions and defensive measures to reassure allies and partners render diplomacy ever more important." (Clearly he is supporting the NATO line against DPR and Russia, note that he assures Poroshenko that the OSCE will do everything possible to assist Ukraine in implementing the agreement - it is an agreement just for Ukraine, if not then OSCE has taken sides, I suggest sadly both apply).
 * You don't decide who is neutral or isn't neutral. Russia considers the OSCE neutral, and Russia participates in the OSCE. The "views" of Russia are presented in the article, and it is pointed out that they are incorrect, as reliable sources say. RGloucester  — ☎ 02:20, 17 November 2014 (UTC)

What is this cross flag
https://niqnaq.wordpress.com/2014/09/20/look-at-these-wonderful-ceasefire-lines-and-tell-me-how-each-side-can-withdraw-15-km-at-all-points/ 85.220.121.185 (talk) 17:56, 19 February 2015 (UTC)


 * That is the flag of the self-proclaimed “New Russia” colony that the Russian-led “separatists” in eastern Ukraine were trying to establish in 2014 and early 2015, but were forced to abandon with acceptance of the Minsk II semi-ceasefire. See Novorossiya (confederation). —Michael Z. 2019-10-30 22:12 z 

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Merger proposal
The Minsk II “package of measures” is merely an addendum to the Minsk agreement, appended after the original was found to be ineffective. Neither Minsk nor Minsk II stands alone. As long as the two articles are separate, a reader can’t understand the totality nor the current state of the subject by reading just one or the other. They should be merged and edited to create a comprehensive article. —Michael Z. 2018-07-31 19:05 z 
 * ✅ Klbrain (talk) 07:21, 20 August 2019 (UTC)

Border Region?
Regarding "To ensure the permanent monitoring of the Ukrainian-Russian border and verification by the OSCE with the creation of security zones in the border regions of Ukraine and the Russian Federation." It appears to me the zone is on the western side of the Donbas region entirely within Ukraine and no where near the Russian Federation. To me this sentence reads as if the security zone is along the Ukrainian-Russian Border. Pastel Abyss (talk) 05:11, 20 February 2022 (UTC)
 * This is correct. This is not about the buffer zone along the contact line but about the monitoring of the Ukrainian-Russian Border. Alaexis¿question? 07:03, 20 February 2022 (UTC)

Russia Withdrawing from the Minsk Agreement.
Article needs an update, Russia had proceeded to recognize the Donbas republics as independent states and not a part of Ukraine, effectively withdrawing from the Minsk agreement. Midgetman433 (talk) 19:27, 21 February 2022 (UTC)

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/feb/21/ukraine-putin-decide-recognition-breakaway-states-today

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/21/world/europe/donetsk-luhansk-donbas-ukraine.html

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/russia-ukraine-donetsk-luhansk-putin-b2019840.html

The two sources I can access say “Minsk agreement, a peace deal that will likely be abandoned as a result of the Russian decision” and recognizing independence “would damage the Minsk peace process.” Let’s not say “is withdrawing” until sources do. It’s possible they will insist they are not withdrawing (going to read the news now). —Michael Z. 20:12, 21 February 2022 (UTC)

Minsk Agreement no longer exists: Putin https://theweek.com/ukraine/1010467/putin-says-the-minsk-agreements-which-aimed-at-peace-in-eastern-ukraine-no-longer Midgetman433 (talk) 19:41, 22 February 2022 (UTC)

Intext attribution
I'm astounded by 's explanation of his/her removal of my work. How can the indication of dates and sources be "an attempt to create a WP:FALSEBALANCE"? I'm truly flabbergasted. How does the identification of references by invisible strings "create a WP:FALSEBALANCE"? How does the addition of new paragraphs where they are warranted create a WP:FALSEBALANCE"? Has the @RGloucester account been hacked? Or am I being punked? Armduino (talk) 17:26, 27 March 2022 (UTC)
 * You used WP:WEASEL wording, like 'a report endorsed by the RAND Corporation' (the report was not 'endorsed' by RAND, but conducted by them), seemingly with the intent to discredit those particular sources. If this is incorrect, I apologise, but one way or the other, in-text attribution is not required for these statements. RGloucester  — ☎ 17:44, 27 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I continue to be flummoxed by . Having read WP:WEASEL,

Articles including weasel words should ideally be rewritten such that they are supported by reliable sources; alternatively, they may be tagged with the,, or similar templates to identify the problem to future readers (who may elect to fix the problem).
 * I am left to wonder why s/he removed them, originally with a non-descriptive tag, if not in order to antagonize me. Why couldn't s/he just rewrite the "endorsed" as "conducted" or even better "commissioned" and just left it there? The most recent explanation doesn't deal with my addition of new paragraphs where they are warranted. Does OP have a toothache or was OP recently involved a car crash? Colour me puzzled. Apology accepted. Armduino (talk) 18:13, 27 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Firstly, there was no intent to 'anatagonise' you. As I said above, there is no need of in-text attribution for these statements, which is why I reverted your edit. See WP:INTEXT. This falls under the third and fourth examples listed there. I also disagree with the addition of WP:PROSELINE-style paragraphs. You will note that I left in the non-problematic parts of your edits. RGloucester  — ☎ 18:22, 27 March 2022 (UTC)
 * I think that in-text is quite helpful here. The statements in questions are either opinions ("The agreements were favorable to Russia") or analysis of Russian aims and it is important for the reader to know that the said opinions and analysis are produced by think-tanks located in the US and UK and funded largely or mostly by those governments: Rand funding Chatham House donors. Alaexis¿question? 08:21, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Of course we can change the specific wording as suggested by, e.g., replace "endorsed" by "conducted." Alaexis¿question? 08:47, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * These are not 'opinions' (nor are the citations to 'opinion pieces'), they are representative of the general academic consensus. Chatham House and RAND are independent, well-respect organisations. If you are proposing that there is some problem with their neutrality, I would suggest you open a discussion at WP:RSN. This proposal will weaponise in-text attribution to delegitimise the statement being made, exactly the sort of thing that WP:INTEXT tells us not to do. RGloucester  — ☎ 13:14, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * This Rand Corporation is "representative of the general academic consensus"? It continues to be funded in large part by the US Department of Defense. "If you are proposing that there is some problem with" RAND Corporation "neutrality..." Yes, otherwise "neutrality" is word salad.
 * "weaponise": really now.
 * I support, whom I find quite reasonable. Armduino (talk) 17:25, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * It's not just me, here Al-Jazeera calls the Rand Corporation a "US-funded consultancy." I'm sure that these sources are reliable, however these are not facts like "Russia attacked Mariupol in February 2022." Whether the Minsk agreements were favourable to Russia or not is a matter of judgement. Some might think they were and others actually think they were very bad. Likewise, no one knows for sure what Russia's aims were in 2014. Personally I think that Chatham House are likely right but here also there are differing opinions. Alaexis¿question? 18:10, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * RAND’s research is also sponsored by non-profits and respected universities in several countries. The article RAND Corporation doesn’t say its research is suspect. The corporation is not listed in WP:RSP nor do the archives there appear to cast doubt on it. Chatham House looks to be even more respected. The objections seem to be based on WP:OR in which WP:IDONTLIKE the clients or funders, and factually baseless to me. —Michael Z. 18:32, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * It's easy enough to find criticism of the Rand Corporation's relationship with the US government, here's what Alex Abella has to say in his Soldiers Of Reason: The RAND Corporation and the Rise of the American Empire, chapter 23

Beyond the economic inequities brought about by rational choice, RAND must also grapple with the dilemma of its original sin: subordinating morality to the advancement of U.S. government policy. This is the millstone borne by all the major participants in the RAND story.
 * The Chatham House, in turn, is characterised as having "strong connections to the UK government" in Critical Mass: The Emergence of Global Civil Society, p. 198.
 * Again, my point is not that these think-tanks are not reliable or that they don't have grounds for their conclusions. What I'm saying is that the reader should understand that these statements represent the perspective of organisations close to the US and UK governments. Alaexis¿question? 19:33, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Citing WP:FRINGE sources like Alex Abella is not going to help make your case. The text is properly cited; no one is hiding where the information came from. These statements are not exceptional, WP:REDFLAG claims, nor from an opinion piece. They represent the mainstream, academic consensus. Attempting to draw exceptional attention to the organisations that produced the relevant reports here with WP:INTEXT attribution seems like an attempt to skew the PoV of this article, or perhaps an attempt at creating a WP:FALSEBALANCE. If the connections of either of these organisations to any government is of a concern, that should be discussed at RSN, where a community consensus can deem them useful only to present 'the perspective of organisations close to the US and UK governments'. RGloucester  — ☎ 20:20, 28 March 2022 (UTC)
 * Happy to raise it at WP:RSP. Btw why do you say that Abella is fringe? Alaexis¿question? 21:24, 28 March 2022 (UTC)

To add to the article former president Poroshenko Minsk agreements “meant nothing”
add this:

In June 2022 on Espreso TV Poroshenko said the Minsk agreements “meant nothing” and claimed credit for giving Kiev enough time to militarize. He cited Sun Tzu’s stratagem, who, according to Poroshenko, emphasized the art of avoiding war.

Happydaze1 (talk) 00:58, 26 July 2022 (UTC)

Minsk Agreement of 1991
Why is there no reference to the Minsk Agreement from 1991 to end the USSR? 2603:6080:D140:B00:80B9:1D4D:4B71:B529 (talk) 19:38, 9 August 2022 (UTC)


 * Maybe you’re thinking of the Belovezh Accords in Belarus, or perhaps the Almaty Protocol. —Michael Z. 20:12, 9 August 2022 (UTC)

Minor edit suggestion: Comma needed
Please add a comma after the word "said" in the sentence with the following phrase: Zakharchenko said "These are historical times." H7opolo (talk) 18:19, 30 November 2022 (UTC)

Russia playing both sides
Russia sent Spec Ops to Donbass, from Crimea, to organise, fund and arm the traitorous rebels, not noted here in any detail, Russia armed forces also fostered unrest and forced a response by Ukr both here 2014 Russian cross-border shelling of Ukraine and here January 2015 Mariupol rocket attack then used the responses to Cry "Oh Poor Russian speaking loyalists, being bullied" Czar Putin and his minions still bleating the same bull shit.2404:4408:638C:5E00:84ED:7F56:FFD5:9F9C (talk) 03:23, 16 December 2022 (UTC)

Where is mention that Ukrain had fillfulled none of its obligation?
This artice 79.139.152.104 (talk) 18:23, 18 December 2022 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 30 December 2022
Two places where I think the insertion of later developments interrupts the flow of thought or introduces ambiguity:

3rd paragraph of Section 2.4, Efficacy: "The parliament of Ukraine approved a law on "special status" for Donbas on 17 March, as specified by Minsk II.[60] Later, in 2019, Ukraine's parliament voted to extend regulations giving limited self-rule to separatist-controlled eastern regions, a prerequisite for a deal to settle the five-year conflict there.[61] The law was immediately criticised by Ukrainian politicians, ..."

Is "the law" of the last sentence the 2015 or 2019 actions of parliament? I think the "the law" should be clarified, or the bold text removed or moved to later in the section.

1st paragraph of Section 3, Evaluation and abandonment: "Following the fall of Debaltseve in February 2015, about one-third of the Donbas region remained in separatist control.[87] A few days before the 2022 Russian invasion, French president Emmanuel Macron and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken opined that the Minsk agreements were "the way forward" to end the conflict in Donbas. Blinken added that it was an incomplete step as there were other outstanding issues.[88] The aim of the Russian intervention in Donbas was to establish pro-Russian governments that, upon reincorporation into Ukraine, would facilitate Russian interference in Ukrainian politics.[89] The agreements were thus highly favourable to the Russian side, as their implementation would accomplish these goals.[90]"

This section is chronological but the paragraph starts with details from 2015 then spends the next three sentences on details from 2022 that aren't really necessary to understanding the first sentence. The bold text should be moved to its proper place in the chronological order. Clay Bahl (talk) 03:12, 30 December 2022 (UTC)
 * @Clay Bahl So, what do you want to change? Could you give your change in a form of X to Y? Lemonaka (talk) 07:22, 1 January 2023 (UTC)
 * Red question icon with gradient background.svg Not done: it's not clear what changes you want to be made. Please mention the specific changes in a "change X to Y" format and provide a reliable source if appropriate. – Jonesey95 (talk) 21:22, 6 January 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 15 January 2023
At the end of the Evaluation and abandonment section, following the sentence:

Angela Merkel said in 2022 that the agreement had been "an attempt to give Ukraine time" and that Ukraine used it to strengthen its armed forces.

I would like to add after this: Some commentators viewed this statement as an attempt to allay criticism that her actions at the time were tantamount to "appeasement".

PaKYr (talk) 02:34, 16 January 2023 (UTC)


 * How does the Chomsky interview support this? I can’t find the word “appeasement” in it. Can you quote the relevant passage? —Michael Z. 04:31, 16 January 2023 (UTC)


 * Chomsky doesn't use the word "appeasement", so I suppose the quotes could be removed/the precise word changed as that's only used in the first article. The sentiment is the same though; there's more detail in the interview, but this is a heavily abridged snippet of the relevant bit:


 * Interviewer: "Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel made some revealing remarks in an interview with the newspaper Die Zeit . . . Is this a case of diplomatic fraud?"


 * Chomsky: "We do know that there is no basis in the historical or diplomatic record for her claims . . . I am inclined to agree with the astute commentator who posts under the name “Moon of Alabama” . . . She is now out to justify her previous decisions as well as the current bad outcome in Ukraine. My hunch is that she is making things up . . . I don’t think there’s a basis for an international tribunal. More likely it is just a case of a political figure seeking to justify herself in a highly toxic climate."


 * PaKYr (talk) 07:50, 16 January 2023 (UTC)
 * Fazi's views are not at all noteworthy. Chomsky's "hunch" would need attribution, but personally I don't see it as noteworthy. Moon of Alabama is a conspiracy theory blog, so this isn't Chomsky's finest moment. BobFromBrockley (talk) 12:22, 16 January 2023 (UTC)
 * Well the interviewer starts by drawing (dubious) conclusions from Merkel about her intentions, and Chomsky tells them they’re wrong. Doesn’t look like anything useful to me.
 * Anyway, Chomsky on Ukraine is logically undisciplined, and generally not useful except to show an example of the left-wing fringe. —Michael Z. 15:59, 16 January 2023 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done for now: please establish a consensus for this alteration before using the template. Mako001 (C)  (T)  🇺🇦 13:42, 19 February 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 11 February 2023
2607:FEA8:9600:B400:B92D:6390:3050:B343 (talk) 05:55, 11 February 2023 (UTC) fought between armed Russian separatist groups and Armed Forces of Ukraine, with Russian regular forces playing a central part.[1] The first, known as the Minsk Protocol, was drafted in 2014 by the Trilateral Contact Group

Instead of above, read: Ukrain imposed war in 2014 on minority Russian speaking population in the Donbas region.
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: Just someone repeating the tripe coming from Putin and the Kremlin. No edit worth making. Mako001 (C) (T)  🇺🇦 13:45, 19 February 2023 (UTC)

Genocide in accusation in Ukraine
It’s said that the claims of genocide by Putin are considered baseless, however it does not actually look into the matter, such as looking into the complete banning of the Russian language in media, schools, etc. Or the petal mines (which are illegal under the Geneva Convention) in Donetsk by Ukraine in parks, roads, etc.

There needs to be at least some mention of the reasons Putin gives, and sources for that. 2601:282:1901:74C0:9507:5DC3:C200:A47D (talk) 01:24, 8 March 2023 (UTC)


 * Russian language is not completely banned in media and schools in Ukraine, and there is no serious allegation that the laws protecting Ukrainian and Indigenous languages constitute genocide.
 * Petal mines are used by the invading Russians since 2014. There have been allegations of some use by Ukraine, but I don’t know of any serious allegations of their connection to any accusation of genocide.
 * Putin’s accusations are false and his reasons are almost nonsensical. The link to the article Accusations of genocide in Donbas is more than sufficient, because it is not really relevant to this article. Starting to list irrelevant, false accusations here is not WP:DUE nor WP:NPOV. —Michael Z. 18:50, 8 March 2023 (UTC)
 * “Lawmakers in 2019 passed legislation to cement Ukrainian as the country's primary language, ordering middle schools that taught in Russian and other minority languages to make the switch and mandating Ukrainian versions of online stores.
 * An article of the laws that entered into force in January goes further, obliging shops, restaurants and the service industry to engage customers in Ukrainian unless clients specifically ask to switch.
 * Anyone caught violating the new legislation twice within one year could be fined 200 euros ($235), almost half of the average salary in the country. No one has been penalised so far.”
 * https://amp.france24.com/en/live-news/20210401-new-law-stokes-ukraine-language-tensions
 * “Human Rights Watch documented numerous cases in which rockets carrying PFM antipersonnel mines, also called “butterfly mines” or “petal mines,” were fired into Russian-occupied areas near Russian military facilities. Ukraine is a state party to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, which prohibits any use of antipersonnel mines.”
 * https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/01/31/ukraine-banned-landmines-harm-civilians KhanOfCockroaches (talk) 19:22, 10 March 2023 (UTC)
 * What do you want to add to this article and where exactly? Alaexis¿question? 20:12, 10 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Doesn’t contradict what I wrote, although your excerpt lacks the details necessary to confirm or deny. Doesn’t constitute evidence of genocide, according to the International Criminal Court or anyone else who’s goal isn’t to see Russia destroy Ukraine. —Michael Z. 20:13, 10 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Agree!! 2601:89:C600:EDC0:F892:2ADD:2839:5536 (talk) 06:16, 17 August 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 20 March 2023
Add Category:Belarus in the Russo-Ukrainian War to this article. Maedc (talk) 15:25, 20 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Pictogram voting question.svg Question: why? M.Bitton (talk) 18:53, 20 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done for now: I don't understand why these would belong together. Actualcpscm (talk) 22:33, 20 March 2023 (UTC)
 * M.Bitton, Actualcpscm: the Minsk agreements sought to end the Russo-Ukrainian War, thus they belong to Category:Russo-Ukrainian War. And they were signed in Belarus, thus they belong to Category:Belarus. Then they belong to Category:Belarus in the Russo-Ukrainian War, right? --Maedc (talk) 09:04, 21 March 2023 (UTC)
 * Does the fact that the Treaty of Riga is signed in Latvia make Latvia a part of the Polish-Soviet war? Summer talk 15:12, 24 July 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 15 May 2023
Change the sentence "and that Ukraine, not Russia, was to blame for their collapse" in the last paragraph of the introduction" to "and that Ukraine has failed to implement them." This more accurately describes Russia's position, which is that they Minsk agreements have already failed prior to the invasion. El819 (talk) 22:10, 15 May 2023 (UTC)


 * Red information icon with gradient background.svg Not done: please provide reliable sources that support the change you want to be made.
 * Additionally, instead of "and that Ukraine has failed to implement them", I would suggest: "and blamed Ukraine for their collapse." ARandomName123 (talk) 00:29, 16 May 2023 (UTC)

Surkov
I think it is worth adding one more sentence at the end ot the article (after the sentence about Merkel's words): "Vladislav Surkov, Putin's aide for Ukraine policy from 2013 to 2020, has said in 2023 that he worked on the Minsk agreements based on the idea that they should not be fulfilled." Ahatanhel (talk) 22:20, 21 June 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 10 July 2023
In the last sentence of the second paragraph of the lead, please change "Donbass" to "Donbas", for consistency with the rest of the article. 95.44.50.222 (talk) 10:31, 10 July 2023 (UTC)


 * ✅. Thank you. —Michael Z. 17:55, 10 July 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 24 July 2023
Angela Merkel said in 2022 that the agreement had been "an attempt to give Ukraine time" and that Ukraine used it to strengthen its armed forces.

I suggest adding the following: ''In a subsequent interview, François Hollande concurred. . Both pointed out the significant difficulties that Ukraine had in 2014/15 to fend off Russian, DPR and LPR forces.'' END Tolmount (talk) 00:17, 24 July 2023 (UTC)


 * The article says “Russian offensive,” nothing about any DLNR. —Michael Z. 01:49, 24 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Well, DNLR forces participated in the battles Merkel and Hollande referred to. To give you one concrete example: Merkels attempt to give Ukraine time is a quote from this interview:
 * Her entire response was: Das setzt aber voraus, auch zu sagen, was genau die Alternativen damals waren. Die 2008 diskutierte Einleitung eines Nato-Beitritts der Ukraine und Georgiens hielt ich für falsch. Weder brachten die Länder die nötigen Voraussetzungen dafür mit, noch war zu Ende gedacht, welche Folgen ein solcher Beschluss gehabt hätte, sowohl mit Blick auf Russlands Handeln gegen Georgien und die Ukraine als auch auf die Nato und ihre Beistandsregeln. Und das Minsker Abkommen 2014 war der Versuch, der Ukraine Zeit zu geben. Sie hat diese Zeit hat auch genutzt, um stärker zu werden, wie man heute sieht. Die Ukraine von 2014/15 ist nicht die Ukraine von heute. Wie man am Kampf um Debalzewe (Eisenbahnerstadt im Donbass, Oblast Donezk, d. Red.) Anfang 2015 gesehen hat, hätte Putin sie damals leicht überrennen können. Und ich bezweifle sehr, dass die Nato-Staaten damals so viel hätten tun können wie heute, um der Ukraine zu helfen.
 * You can put that in DeepL or something similar. There's an article on Wikipedia about the battle of Debaltseve, and the DNLR forces are listed as belligerents. For the sake of completeness, I would include them. Tolmount (talk) 15:19, 24 July 2023 (UTC)
 * What’s that quotation offering? Merkel doesn’t mention DLNR. Since you bring Hollande into it, I recall a quotation where he explicitly said DLNR were not parties to or involved in negotiating the Minsk agreements, and Putin only brought his puppets to add their signatures (without even identifying DLNR in the text or next to the signature). Anyway, politicians speaking with hindsight are unreliable primary sources.
 * A belligerent is an independent or legally recognized state party. I don’t believe current reliable secondary sources since around 2019 treat them that way at all, if any might have left the possibility open previously. I believe the basis for an argument is that it’s explicitly stated by reliable secondary sources, not by inferring it from infobox flag icons in some other Wikipedia article that may or may not get it right. —Michael Z. 19:26, 24 July 2023 (UTC)
 * I wasn't making the point that the so-called people's republics played a role in the Minsk negotiations. I was making the point that their troops participated in the fighting of 2014/15. And I originally thought that if Merkel's 2022 comments were included in this article, which they are, that it would then also be worth mentioning what Hollande commented on it. If you dislike DNLR to be mentioned, then don't.
 * Having said that, i disagree on your definition of a belligerent, and i'm not aware that your definition is universally agreed upon. Proxies can be counted as belligerents. Tolmount (talk) 21:35, 24 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Okay, more focussed critique of the proposed text:
 * It may be WP:SYNTH, by implying that Germany and France sponsored the Minsk agreements for the purpose of letting Ukraine improve its military strength. Is this true? We should say it if reliable secondary sources say so in so many words, and not imply it otherwise. Does saying this represent WP:DUE weight compared to all of the other possible goals of the Minsk agreements?
 * Neither Merkel nor Hollande mentioned DLNR, and so the paraphrasing of their statements shouldn’t introduce them as if they had.
 * —Michael Z. 22:21, 24 July 2023 (UTC)
 * To point 2: Point taken, a phrasing along the lines of They pointed out that in 2014/15 Ukraine was getting under significant military pressure would have been better.
 * To point 1: I didn't propose the changement because i support their claim. I meant it in a way of important person involved said this and that about it. We can't tell if this was a motive behind Hollande's and Merkel's actions in 2015. We don't have evidence to support it, we don't have evidence to refute it. What we can tell is that Ukraines military was in a relativley weak state in 2014/15, and the Minsk Agreements dimmed down what was a hot war at the time to a less hot war/ cold war afterwards, and gave time. But we can't tell for sure if it was designed to do that. Theoretically it could also be a middle ground thing in that it was a motive, but just one among others. I don't have a definitive answer to the WP:SYNTH and WP:DUE questions you raised. Tolmount (talk) 00:38, 25 July 2023 (UTC)
 * Well, it included a ceasefire agreement, so clearly its overt goals included reducing violence (it did, although no actual ceasefire ever held over the following years). —Michael Z. 01:41, 25 July 2023 (UTC)

Lavrov brought it up at the UN in 2023
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/09/20/world/united-nations-general-assembly?referringSource=widget&widgetType=top-stories&smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare Victor Grigas (talk) 20:42, 20 September 2023 (UTC)

Merkel quote out of context
The Merkel sentence that ''"Angela Merkel said in 2022 that the agreement had been "an attempt to give Ukraine time" and that Ukraine used it to strengthen its armed forces." is incorrect.''

In a 2022 interview with Die Zeit, Merkel was asked whether, in hindsight, she regrets any of her actions. Merkel replied: "I believed that the attempt by Ukraine and Georgia to join NATO, which was discussed in 2008, was wrong. They did not have the necessary preconditions, nor were the consequences of such a decision fully considered - both in terms of Russia's actions against Georgia and Ukraine and in terms of NATO and the rules of support. And the 2014 Minsk agreement was an attempt to give Ukraine time." Merkel said it about preparing to join NATO, not about arming.

This should be removed or changed.

Original text:

ZEIT: Man kann aber doch plausibel finden, wie man in früheren Umständen gehandelt hat, und es angesichts der Ergebnisse trotzdem heute für falsch halten.

Merkel: Das setzt aber voraus, auch zu sagen, was genau die Alternativen damals waren. Die 2008 diskutierte Einleitung eines Nato-Beitritts der Ukraine und Georgiens hielt ich für falsch. Weder brachten die Länder die nötigen Voraussetzungen dafür mit, noch war zu Ende gedacht, welche Folgen ein solcher Beschluss gehabt hätte, sowohl mit Blick auf Russlands Handeln gegen Georgien und die Ukraine als auch auf die Nato und ihre Beistandsregeln. Und das Minsker Abkommen 2014 war der Versuch, der Ukraine Zeit zu geben. Chuubii (talk) 17:24, 17 November 2023 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 4 February 2024
The Merkel sentence that "Angela Merkel said in 2022 that the agreement had been "an attempt to give Ukraine time" and that Ukraine used it to strengthen its armed forces." is incorrect.

In a 2022 interview with Die Zeit, Merkel was asked whether, in hindsight, she regrets any of her actions. Merkel replied: "I believed that the attempt by Ukraine and Georgia to join NATO, which was discussed in 2008, was wrong. They did not have the necessary preconditions, nor were the consequences of such a decision fully considered - both in terms of Russia's actions against Georgia and Ukraine and in terms of NATO and the rules of support. And the 2014 Minsk agreement was an attempt to give Ukraine time." Merkel said it about preparing to join NATO, not about arming.

This should be removed or changed.

Original text:

ZEIT: Man kann aber doch plausibel finden, wie man in früheren Umständen gehandelt hat, und es angesichts der Ergebnisse trotzdem heute für falsch halten.

Merkel: Das setzt aber voraus, auch zu sagen, was genau die Alternativen damals waren. Die 2008 diskutierte Einleitung eines Nato-Beitritts der Ukraine und Georgiens hielt ich für falsch. Weder brachten die Länder die nötigen Voraussetzungen dafür mit, noch war zu Ende gedacht, welche Folgen ein solcher Beschluss gehabt hätte, sowohl mit Blick auf Russlands Handeln gegen Georgien und die Ukraine als auch auf die Nato und ihre Beistandsregeln. Und das Minsker Abkommen 2014 war der Versuch, der Ukraine Zeit zu geben. Chuubii (talk) 17:24, 17 November 2023 (UTC) Chuubii (talk) 13:10, 4 February 2024 (UTC)


 * This comes from this Reuters piece. This is how they interpreted her words . Are you sure there isn't something elsewhere in the interview which caused them to write it? Alaexis¿question? 20:10, 4 February 2024 (UTC)
 * The Reuters piece contains a misleading interpretation of what Merkel said. There is no reason to use Reuters as a source when the original interview is available (https://archive.ph/c4ZVK archived interview from Zeit.de) The edit request (message you are responding to), has the original quote in German. Merkel said it about giving Ukraine time to prepare to join NATO, not about strengthening their armed forces.
 * I think there's a misunderstanding about both Merkel's words and also the Reuters piece. Merkel only said "And the 2014 Minsk Agreement was an attempt to give Ukraine time." She didn't elaborate on what she intended that time to be used for. Although she discusses the plan for Ukraine to join NATO prior to this sentence, I don't see any obvious logical connection between them, and making any further deductions would probably constitute original research. The only place where Merkel explicitly states the intentions of her policy was in the previous paragraph, where she says "It [her policies on Russia and Ukraine] was an attempt to prevent just such a war." Similarly, Reuters didn't make any interpretations about Merkel's intentions either, it simply repeated Merkel's statement. The second half of the sentence, "which it [Ukraine] had used to become more able to defend itself", is just a statement of fact, a description of what Ukraine ended up doing, regardless of whether Merkel wanted Ukraine to do so. The current sentence in our article reflects this point by Reuters, although like the original sentence in the Reuters piece, it perhaps is a bit unclear, as at a first glance it may seem that Merkel said that Ukraine used this time to arm itself. I have just reworded the sentence to remove this ambiguity. Liu1126 (talk) 02:30, 4 March 2024 (UTC)
 * ❌ Stale, contested request, possibly already done. * Pppery * it has begun... 01:28, 31 March 2024 (UTC)

unrest was caused only by Russia
Greetings @Alaexis, I think it's incorrect to remove sourced material for the "NPOV" reason, as NPOV encourages editors to provide all the significant points of view, not to delete those. Thanks! ManyAreasExpert (talk) 20:23, 10 April 2024 (UTC)


 * Sorry if it appeared to be not in the spirit of collaboration. My concern was that it was extremely one-sided ignoring the local reasons for the protests (see sources here). Sure, I can add it. Alaexis¿question? 21:21, 10 April 2024 (UTC)
 * Other editors are encouraged to enrich the fragment with other sources and other POVs, thanks! There are lots of academic sources on a subject. Let's prefer more recent sources, as those re-evaluated their views after the start of 2022 invasion. ManyAreasExpert (talk) 21:26, 10 April 2024 (UTC)
 * No edits were made since, I'm going to return the fragment with different wording and more sources, please add more POVs instead of removing it after, thanks! ManyAreasExpert (talk) 07:13, 15 April 2024 (UTC)

History section is short
For such a contentious and complicated situation, I find the history section remarkably small. Why did the conflict start? What were the disagreements or aims of both sides? This then leads up to the actual content of the Minsk accords which should address then these issues. 2001:1C02:2806:9400:84FE:3977:4541:DF3F (talk) 22:21, 11 April 2024 (UTC)

History section appears to be biased.
The History section is poorly written, and seems to have strong bias towards Russia. It italicises the "devastating" part of the sentence, when this emphasis is definitely not needed. My guess would be that it was written by someone strongly in favour of Russia. 185.13.50.184 (talk) 06:38, 15 April 2024 (UTC)

Extended-confirmed-protected edit request on 23 May 2024
Please remove the italicisation of 'devastating' in reference to the attack on Debaltseve. I believe it does not fit with the intended tone of Wikipedia, and that it could lead to a pro-Russian bias being inferred by a reader. Thank you in advance. Thecolonpagesaretoocomplicated (talk) 07:37, 23 May 2024 (UTC)
 * ✅. I've replaced it with "major", I believe that it's more encyclopedic. Alaexis¿question? 09:27, 23 May 2024 (UTC)

This article is very incoherent, taking sides and cornering Russia
That is all 114.10.121.172 (talk) 01:53, 7 July 2024 (UTC)


 * What exactly do you propose to change? Alaexis¿question? 15:07, 7 July 2024 (UTC)