Secretary of State John Kerry predicted that harsh sanctions against Russia could be lifted within a matter of months as long as Russia cooperates with a ceasefire in Ukraine.
In a broader speech that provided an update on the administration’s fight against the Islamic State and the impact of its nuclear deal with Iran, Kerry said “it is possible” that the United States and Europe could remove sanctions on Moscow if it lives up to its ceasefire agreements hashed out in Minsk last year.
“I believe that with effort and with bona fide, legitimate intent to solve the problem on both sides, it is possible in these next months to find those Minsk agreements implemented and get to a place where sanctions can be appropriately, because of the full implementation, removed,” Kerry said Friday during a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
The comments stand out as a rare positive assessment of the agreements aimed at ending the deadly conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
The U.S. and Europe leveled a wide range of sanctions against Russia in early 2014 after Moscow began a series of aggressive and disrupting military moves in neighboring Ukraine. Russia seized control and annexed Ukraine’s Crimea region and backed pro-Russian separatist forces in eastern Ukraine.
Since that time, world leaders have been trying to pressure Russia to back off and stop sending troops and arms into Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine signed an original ceasefire in Minsk, Belarus, in the fall of 2013, but Moscow continued violating its terms. Another was agreed to in February 2015.
Kerry said he and Vice President Joe Biden earlier in the week met with Ukrainian President Poroshenko to “help ensure full implementation of the Minsk agreements.”
