Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, left, speaks to Russian President Vladimir Putin as German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko come to pose for a photo during a time-break in their peace talks.(Photo: Alexander Zemlianichenko, AP)
Russia's President Vladimir Putin on Thursday announced a cease-fire for eastern Ukraine starting midnight on Saturday, following marathon peace talks in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.
However, questions remained whether Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists have agreed on its terms.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Francois Hollande, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Putin began talks on Wednesday in an effort to hash out a peace agreement between Kiev and the separatists amid a spike in fighting.
Putin announced that agreements had been signed, one declaring the cease-fire, the other to implement it, more than 15 hours after the talks began. He said that he and Poroshenko disagreed on assessing the situation in a key flashpoint.
Hollande said he and Merkel would ask their European Union partners to support the deal at a summit later Thursday, the BBC reported.
The government-controlled town of Debaltseve, a key transport hub between the two main rebel-controlled cities in the east, has been the focus of intense fighting in recent weeks as the rebels sought to encircle the Ukrainian troops there.
Putin said the rebels consider the Ukrainian forces surrounded and expect them to surrender, while Ukraine disagrees. He said an agreement had been made with Poroshenko to clarify the situation, and urged the warring parties to show restraint.
Putin said the peace deal also determines a division line from which heavy weapons will be pulled back and contains provision for providing a special status for rebellious regions, solving humanitarian issues and settling issues related to border control.
Putin's announcement came soon after the International Monetary Fund announced a funding package for Ukraine of $17.5 billion Thursday, bringing the estimated total financing package to Ukraine from various sources to about $40 billion over a four-year period.
USA TODAY
Ukraine's fate hangs in balance as leaders meet in Minsk
More than 5,400 people have lost their lives in the conflict that started nearly a year ago, and close to a million people have been displaced from their homes. Tens of thousands of people have fled to neighboring countries.
As the talks were underway, both rebels and government troops reported fighting across eastern Ukraine.
A previous peace deal agreed in Minsk has failed to quell the violence.
The talks came as President Obama warned Putin that the "costs for Russia will rise" if its aggression does not stop. The West alleges Moscow is supporting rebel forces in eastern Ukraine, a charge that Russia has repeatedly denied.
"The entire world is waiting to see whether the situation moves toward de-escalation, weapons pullback, cease-fire or … spins out of control," Poroshenko said upon arriving in Minsk.
Contributing: Kim Hjelmgaard, Associated Press
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