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Merkel and Obama meet as arming Ukraine debated

09 February 2015 20:09 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. As the deadly violence in Ukraine ramps up, so does the international scramble to find a solution, APA reports quoting CNN.

President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met to discuss the crisis Monday in Washington, while in Brussels, Belgium, the European Union agreed on new sanctions against pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine and their supporters.

In a joint news conference with Merkel, Obama said Russia has "violated just about every commitment" it made in the September Minsk agreement meant to help end the fighting in Ukraine.

"Instead of withdrawing from eastern Ukraine, Russian forces continue to operate there, training separatists and helping to coordinate attacks," he said.

But the organization opted to delay implementing the sanctions for a week, to give more opportunity for a negotiated solution to take hold, EU Foreign Policy Chief Federica Mogherini told reporters.

The top priority, she said, "is to improve things on the ground," where escalating fighting is taking a toll on civilians.

In Washington, Obama and Merkel were expected to discuss proposals to send lethal aid to the Ukrainian military. Merkel says that's a bad idea.

"The progress that Ukraine needs cannot be achieved with more weapons," she said. "I have grave doubts about the validity of this point."

Merkel said she believes that if the West sends weapons to Ukraine, Russia could further step up its involvement in the conflict, possibly introducing its air force into the fight.