KYIV. Dec 19 (Interfax) - The participants in the Trilateral Contact Group (TCG) for settling the armed conflict in Donbas will continue work in a video conference format so as to complete negotiations on a number of key aspects before the end of 2019, Ukraine's representative to the TCG political subgroup Oleksiy Reznikov said.
"We managed to continue the dialogue today and agree that all necessary steps will be taken to have a positive result this year. Therefore, I'll stress that we have agreed that the Trilateral Contact Group's work in 2019 is not finished and will be continued using alternative communication channels," Reznikov told journalists on Thursday.
Ukraine's representative in the TCG humanitarian subgroup Valeria Lutkovska said Kyiv stands ready to continue the talks in a video conference format, but the date also depends on a number of factors.
"There is a great desire to implement the agreements reached at the Normandy-format summit. Secondly, we have some commitments to those who remain in captivity," Lutkovska said.
"Therefore, we will keep working on resolving technical problems and nuances that have emerged," she said.
"We still have an opportunity to meet in a video conference format this year. I do hope this opportunity will be taken and we will finalize technical problems that emerged yesterday," Lutkovska said.
Asked when the TCG talks in a video conference format may be continued, Lutkovska said, "I know we have little time [...] We will do all we can to advance this date. As for whether this video contact will take place this or next week, you perfectly understand that this depends not only on Ukraine's desire. We can arrange such a video contact even today, but the matter should be coordinated, particularly with OSCE representatives," she said.