KYIV. Feb 15 (Interfax) - Russia's recognition of the self-proclaimed Donbas republics would signify its intentional withdrawal from the Minsk Agreements and would deal a strong blow to the political and diplomatic settlement process, Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleh Mykolenko said.
"As the Russian State Duma has adopted a resolution, urging the Russian president to recognize the so-called LPR and DPR, we reaffirm the unwavering stance of Ukraine: the recognition of the LPR and the DPR by Russia would signify its intentional withdrawal from the Minsk Agreements," Mykolenko told Interfax on Tuesday.
A step of the kind would deal a strong blow to the political and diplomatic settlement of the armed conflict in Donbas, he said.
"The recognition of the LPR and the DPR would have no legal consequences whatsoever... But the Russian president's support for the State Duma resolution would have much broader consequences harmful for the world order and the global security architecture," Mykolenko said.
Russia has two options, "either to take the path of de-escalation and diplomatic dialogue or brace for a joint resolute response from the international community," he said.
"We are urging Moscow to take a constructive stance to make progress within the existing negotiating formats. Or else Russia will bear full responsibility for ruining the Minsk Agreements and the process of a peaceful settlement of the armed conflict," Mykolenko said.
The State Duma adopted a resolution on Tuesday to urgently call on the Russian president to recognize the independence of the self-proclaimed Donbas republics.
The resolution passed by a rating vote. A document authored by United Russia deputies Viktor Vodolatsky and Artyom Turov, which envisaged consultations with the Foreign Ministry before directing the call to the president, was discussed alongside a draft from the Communist Party's faction, which said that the call for recognizing the DPR and the LPR should be instantly sent to the Russian president. The draft from the Communist Party gained 351 votes, while the parliamentary majority's initiative gained 310.