Ukraine's Zelenskyy Appoints 4 Representatives for Minsk Peace Process

19 June 2019 19:04

Former Ukrainian President and current Kyiv's representative in Minsk talks Leonid Kuchma (L) and current Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a press briefing on June 3 in Kyiv, Ukraine.Courtesy

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed four new representatives in the working subgroups of the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), also known as the Minsk peace process. The group – which was formed after the war between Ukraine and Russia broke out in 2014 – comprises of representatives from Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE and is focused at finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has appointed four new representatives in the working subgroups of the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG), also known as the Minsk peace process. The group – which was formed after the war between Ukraine and Russia broke out in 2014 – comprises of representatives from Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE and is focused at finding a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

This follows Zelenskyy’s June 3 reappointment of ex-Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma as the head representative in Minsk.

The new representatives in the subgroups are:

Bohdan Bondar(subgroup for security) - Major-General Bondar was previously the commander of Ukraine’s Armed Forces Command Center and the deputy chief of the Joint Operational Headquarters of the Armed Forces.

Ihor Veremiy(subgroup for social and economic issues) - Veremiy already represented Ukraine in the TCG in Minsk before. He also worked as the first deputy head of the Department for Implementing Reforms at the Presidential Administration. He also held position of Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade and the first deputy head of the Department of Economic Policy and the Implementation of Economic Reforms at the Presidential Administration.

Valeria Lutkovska(subgroup for humanitarian issues) - Lutkovska served as a Ukrainian parliament representative for human rights in 2012-2017 and also worked as deputy Minister of Justice and as Commissioner for Compliance with the Convention for Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. Lutkovska will replace Iryna Heraschenko.

Oleksandr Motsyk(subgroup on political issues) - Motsyk is a diplomat and holds the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. From 2010 to 2015, he was the Ukrainian ambassador to the United States. He also previously served as a representative of Ukraine at the TCG Minsk for political issues.