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Updated 1.44pm
KIEV AND PRO-RUSSIAN rebels have signed off on a roadmap to implement a Ukraine peace deal thrashed out during marathon talks in Minsk, President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko said today.
“The contact group signed a document that we prepared with a great deal of tension,” Poroshenko said of the deal, which Putin said was “a set of measures to implement the Minsk agreements”, referring to a widely disregarded September peace deal.
Earlier Poroshenko, Russia’s Vladimir Putin, France’s Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had been locked in talks at the presidential palace in Minsk since late last night, trying to work out a plan to end a conflict that has pitted pro-Russian rebels against Kiev government forces in east Ukraine, killing at least 5,300 people and plunging East-West relations to a post Cold War low.
Arch-foes Poroshenko and Putin were meeting for the first time since October at the climax of a frantic European diplomatic drive aimed at stopping the worst East-West crisis since the end of the Cold War from escalating.
Difficult birth
Western European leaders have voiced cautious optimism about the plan, which has been hailed as a great victory by pro-Russian rebels but met with scepticism by war-weary civilians.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was a driving force behind the negotiations, along with French President Francois Hollande, said she had “no illusions” and that “big hurdles” remained in ending the 10-month conflict.
“We now have a glimmer of hope,” she said in the Belarussian capital,adding that “concrete steps must of course be taken and there will still be big hurdles ahead”.
“I have no illusions, we have no illusions,” she said, “much work” remained.
Hollande said the deal included a “comprehensive political solution” and provided “serious hope, even if all is not done”.
Merkel’s Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said it represented neither “a comprehensive solution” nor a “breakthrough”.
He said he welcomed the truce plan but “without any exuberance” since “it was a difficult birth”.
Putin, accused of backing the rebels, joked with journalists about whether they had slept or not after the marathon overnight talks.
“It wasn’t the best night of my life but the morning, in my opinion, is a good one because despite all the complexities of the negotiating process we still manged to agree on the main points,” he said.
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Aged between 12 and 14 … Just shows evil has no age .. How can you protect against that
the sad thing is he may not have willingly worn it -
Adults should know better, but a kid that young has clearly been severely indoctrinated (as have all of Daesh’s foot soldiers). Tragic and heinous attack.
He may not have known what he was wearing
There are a lot of reports of young children/teens being manipulated into performing suicide bombings, with their families and friends being threatened. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be to be put in that position.
@Steve McMahon-By stopping immigration from this Ideology masquerading as a religion we can at least partially protect ourselves ,-but it’s coming our way for sure under existing conditions.
Erdogan appears to have incredible investigative powers, has definitively solved this one a few hours after the event. Just like the coup, where the entire civil service was gutted a couple of days later.
@Michael Garvey-But Erdogan does have his admirers,-one being What-difference-does-it-make-now-Hillary Clinton!
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—-”Clinton clearly views Erdoğan as a formidable leader, having described him in her memoir, “Living History,” as an “ambitious, forceful, devout, and effective politician.—”
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http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/the-future-of-us-turkey-relations.aspx?pageID=449&nID=103093&NewsCatID=396
He prob is forceful, devout and ambitious.
And now he has said they have no idea what age the perpetrator was
So Erdogan is saying this.Ya,I’ll believe it.
Equating the PKK to Daesh is a nice slice of doublethink and propaganda from Erdogan alright.
Wonder if the lady who is mentironed above is the mother who lost 4 of her children ….horrendous loosing one child is unthinkable but 4 …I have no words.
“The president said the Islamic State group was the “likely perpetrator” of the bomb attack, the deadliest in 2016, that targeted a celebration attended by many Kurds.”
Yeah, because I hear that out of the two of them it’s IS that hates the Kurds the most, and not Erdogan. Uh huh.
These so called Islamists are the devil’s disiples,nothing else.They are not Muslims and have no right whatsoever to quote the Koran or shout allahu akbar! None ! So next time when young men and women are in their bedroom on their computer being brainwashed on the ideology that they should carry out their “duty “to Muhammad by murdering innocent people,realise that you are doing it for the Devil ok No one else.you are NOT Muslims. You are vicious murdering brutes with no rational cause and are not going to be with 7 lovely brides in paradise. You are just going to burn in hell.
@Gerry Fallon-The Koran the Islamists use to justify themselves is the same Koran that all other Muslim use and Muslims will not tolerate any revision of its contents saying that the commands of Allah are unalterable.
All Muslims pay the Annual 2.5% ZAKAT Charity tax amounting to over $200 Billion and 1/8th of this is earmarked by Sharia Law for Jihad against non-Muslims and apostates. This is stated unequivocally in the Hanbook of Sharia Law called ‘The Reliance of the Traveller’ see below and link.All Muslims know where this money goes to and so all Muslims are complicit in Global Terror against non-Muslims and Apostaes.
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—-”H8.17: Those Fighting for Allah/Category 7
The seventh category is those fighting for Allah, meaning people engaged in Islamic military operations for whom no salary has been allotted in the army roster (O: but who are volunteers for jihad without remuneration). They are given enough to suffice them for the operation, even if affluent; of weapons, mounts, clothing, and expenses (O: for the duration of the journey, round trip, and the time they spend there, even if prolonged.—”
http://islamexposed.blogspot.ie/2010/08/reliance-of-traveller-handbook-of.html
Strange for ISIS to be attacking their biggest ally?
One of their biggest allies, I think.
Anyway, is their any rational thinking to be expected from them?
Vile pigs
Watched some of the funerals of the victims on Turkish TV would break your heart so many small coffins …..one of a 3 month old baby . The heartbroken mother who lost 4 of her children said that what stopped her from taking her own life to be with her children was that she had a child still living who needed her.
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