Germany and France charged with failure of Donbass peace

The head of the Russian State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, blamed Germany and France for the failure of a peace plan in eastern Ukraine that was upended by Russia's February invasion.

Volodin, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, also demanded reparations payments from Germany and France in a post to the social messaging service Telegram on Saturday.

"Germany and France must pay compensation to residents of the Donbass region," Volodin wrote. "The current situation in Ukraine is a result of the mendacious policies of the leaders of these states."

Russia has attempted to annex the region, along with other parts of Ukraine, following the invasion.

Volodin accused the governments in Berlin and Paris of staging a "state overthrow" in Ukraine in 2014 under the guise of a peaceful transition of power amid protests in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

Volodin went on to claim that neither Germany nor France planned to comply with the peace plans signed by the two countries along with Urkaine and Russia in the Belarusian capital of Minsk.

The Minsk peace plan for the east of Ukraine, which was under Russian influence, after the start of hostilities in 2014 provided for far-reaching obligations for the parties to the conflict. But most of the terms were never implemented. Russia and Ukraine blamed each other for this.