MOSCOW. Feb 6 (Interfax) - If the leaders of France and Germany make an acceptable proposal for southeastern Ukraine, that might lay a foundation for peace talks over Donbas, says Alexei Pushkov, the head of the State Duma International Affairs Committee.
"I don't think eastern Ukraine will be satisfied with a formula of special governance which was once used by Kyiv and ditched by Kyiv itself after Donbas held elections," Pushkov told Interfax on Thursday, commenting on the reports that French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will bring a plan of resolution of the Ukrainian crisis to Moscow on Friday.
"This has to be a formula that guarantees a special status for this region, and if one is devised and proposed, that could become a foundation for further peace talks," he said.
The initiative the French and German leaders are planning to put forward will also contain a proposal of new talks and a resolution of the problem of east Ukraine with due regard for Ukraine's territorial integrity, he said.
Merkel said that a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine should be the key clause of any initiative today, Pushkov said.
"I think this could be a good point of departure for successful talks. At the same time, it should be stressed that first and foremost they will have to persuade Kyiv which started this round of exchanges, when Poroshenko ordered to step up hostilities and shelling of Donbas two weeks ago, in the early hours of Sunday," the Duma member said.