The deal, aimed at stopping fighting in the east of Ukraine, includes monitoring and verification of a ceasefire by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) on both sides of the border.
In a phone call Friday with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, the US secretary of state “emphasized the need for Russia to implement all 12 points in the September 5th Minsk agreement," the State Department said in a statement on Saturday.
Russian President Vladimir Putin blamed the Ukrainian government Friday for blocking implementation of the peace agreement.
The Russian leader said Moscow was committed to observing the deal but he said, “We don’t see the wish among our partners in Kiev to resolve this problem in South-East Ukraine through a peaceful political process, by talks and negotiations.”
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has accused Russia of maintaining troops in Ukraine and undermining the peace accord.
The United States has warned that there will be no sanctions relief for Russia until Moscow withdraws all its forces and military equipment from Ukraine.
The West accuses Russia of stoking unrest in Ukraine by supplying weapons to pro-Russian forces fighting for control of eastern provinces. Moscow denies the accusations.
The US and the European Union have imposed several rounds of sanctions on Russia over the conflict, targeting the country’s banking, energy and defense sectors.
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