Another little snippet of reaction to the Minsk deal:
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Minsk that "we now have a glimmier of hope" for Ukraine but she is under "no illusion" and there is still "very, very much work" to do. She added that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has done everything possible to end the bloodshed in Ukraine.
(Reuters/AFP)
Here is a brief wrap-up item from our news desk on the Minsk deal:
The leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany, and France have signed off on a road map for a Ukrainian peace deal after 16 hours of talks in the Belarusian capital, Minsk.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin said the agreement calls for a cease-fire to begin on February 15 and for heavy weapons to be withdrawn and a security zone to be established.
The deal was reportedly also signed by the self-proclaimed leaders of the pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine's Luhansk and Donetsk regions.
Poroshenko said the document does not give any autonomy to the regions held by separatists and also envisages Ukraine reestablishing control over its borders by the end of 2015.
The agreement also calls for the withdrawal of all foreign forces from Ukrainian territory.
Poroshenko said the deal calls for the release of all people held captive by both sides within three weeks and he said an agreement was also made for Ukrainian Air Force pilot Nadia Savchenko to be released from a Russian jail, where she has been held for more than six months.
French President Francois Hollande, who along with German Chancellor Angela Merkel had negotiated with Poroshenko and Putin, thanked the Russian leader for "pressuring" the rebel leaders.
Fighting in eastern Ukraine has killed more than 5,350 people and forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes since April.
(AFP, Reuters, Interfax)