MOSCOW. Nov 1 (Interfax) - Kyiv has been trying to create a provocative situation in Donbas in order to engage Russia in hostilities, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday.
"Yes, tensions are obviously escalating. Attempts are being made to create a provocative situation, to trigger a certain response of the militia, and to engage Russia in any sort of hostilities," Lavrov said on the Rossiya-24 (VGTRK) television channel.
He described as a "mysterious story" the reported use of Bayraktar drones purchased by Kyiv from Ankara in southeastern Ukraine.
"The Ukrainian Armed Forces commander said that the weapon was used, while the defense minister said that nothing of the sort happened. I think they are discussing what would be more advantageous to them, either to show how 'cool' they are, as they start dropping bombs in flagrant, direct violation of the Minsk Agreements, or to say that they are actually fulfilling the Minsk Agreements and to propose a Normandy-format meeting," Lavrov said.
Speaking of prospects to hold a ministerial meeting in the Normandy format, Lavrov said, "We do not need a meeting as an end in itself."
"They are trying to 'beckon' to us and say that the Russian president has promised to organize a Normandy-format event, at least on the ministerial level. We are not avoiding meetings," Lavrov said.
The Russian leader "said, as he promised to organize work on the process, that it was first necessary to fulfill the agreements reached in Paris in December 2019," he added.
"Every agreement reached there was supposed to be fulfilled by the Kyiv authorities. They did not lift a finger to follow the Steinmeier formula, establish the special status of Donbas, permanently formalize this status in Ukrainian laws, and address security issues," Lavrov said.