Kerry: Russia sanctions to stay unless it fulfills obligations:
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has reiterated that sanctions against Russia over its actions in Ukraine will remain in place unless Moscow fulfills its obligations under the Minsk agreement reached in February last year.
Kerry made the remarks on July 7 in a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Kyiv, where he also announced an additional $23 million in U.S. humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.
Kery said, "Ukraine is making a good-faith effort to implement Minsk, no doubt in my mind about that."
But he added that "without real security in the Donbas, an end to the bloodshed on the contact line, the use of heavy weapons, the blockading the OSCE access, without that, Minsk is doomed to fail."
Kerry's visit to Kyiv comes ahead of a NATO summit in Warsaw that Poroshenko will also attend in the hope of securing support and assistance.
Kerry visited Georgia on July 6, where he underscored Washington's commitment to supporting the ex-Soviet nation in its long-running standoff with two separatist regions backed by Russia.
The two countries signed a new military cooperation agreement during Kerry visit to Georgia -- his first to the Caucasus nation as secretary of state. (AFP, Interfax, Reuters)
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