Hilary Benn – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Hilary Benn on 2015-10-22.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the Minsk Agreement in reducing fighting in Ukraine.

Mr Philip Hammond

A renewed attempt in early September by the Minsk signatories to ensure a comprehensive ceasefire has resulted in a considerable reduction in fighting along the line of contact in Eastern Ukraine, compared with the levels in previous months. Since September, casualties have mainly resulted from land mines and unexploded ordnance rather than direct shelling, which has practically ceased.