On Saturday, Germany and France released a joint statement expressing concerns over the increasing ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine, amid reports of a Russian military buildup along the border. This was reported on the official Twitter page of the German Feign Office.
In particular, France and Germany called on the parties of the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine for an immediate de-escalation. In addition, the Foreign Ministries of France and Germany drew attention to the "growing number of ceasefire violations" after the stabilization of the situation in Donbas since mid-2020.
"France and Germany are concerned by the growing number of ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine, which come after the situation had stabilized since July 2020. We are closely monitoring the situation, especially the movements of Russian troops, and call on all parties to exercise restraint and work toward the immediate de-escalation of tensions," the German Foreign Office and the French Foreign Ministry said.
Berlin and Paris reaffirmed their "support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within internationally recognized borders," as Kyiv accused Russia of massing thousands of troops on its shared borders as well as on the Crimean Peninsula.
"As mediators in the Normandy format, Françe and Germany are continuing their efforts to see the Minsk agreements implemented in full, and regular negotiations are being held to that end. In this regard, we welcome the extension of the mandate of the OSCE's Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM), and call for an end to the restrictions on the mission's freedom of movement so that it can accomplish its objectives in accordance with its Mandate," the statement concluded.