[ti:Will Talks in Belarus End Fighting in Ukraine]
[ar:Christopher Cruise]
[al:In the News]
[by:www.21voa.com]
[00:00.00]A ceasefire is to take effect Saturday in eastern Ukraine. 
[00:05.69]The ceasefire agreement came this week 
[00:09.31]after all-night talks involving the leaders 
[00:12.72]of Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany. 
[00:17.03]Yet the leaders admit many details are yet to be worked out. 
[00:22.50]Diplomats add that the agreement left many disputes unresolved.
[00:28.09]About 20 people were killed in fierce fighting 
[00:32.81]in the days leading up to the talks in Belarus. 
[00:36.46]The leaders agreed on a truce between the Ukrainian military 
[00:40.96]and pro-Russian separatist forces in eastern Ukraine. 
[00:45.24]During the next two weeks, 
[00:47.76]the opposing sides are to exchange prisoners 
[00:51.86]and withdraw heavy weapons from the battlefield.
[00:55.69]Russia supports the rebels. 
[00:58.44]Russian President Vladimir Putin says 
[01:02.06]the agreement requires them to withdraw to the former ceasefire line. 
[01:07.48]He says Ukrainian forces are to withdraw from the current line, 
[01:13.18]creating a wide, neutral area.
[01:16.50]Mr. Putin spoke to reporters Thursday morning, 
[01:20.36]after the all-night negotiations.
[01:23.54]In his words, "It was not the best night of my life, 
[01:28.23]but it has been a good morning 
[01:30.82]because we have managed to reach a major agreement."
[01:35.38]He said the agreement includes a Ukrainian promise 
[01:40.51]to provide constitutional guarantees of what he called 
[01:45.38]"the rights of the people" in two areas: 
[01:48.77]Donetsk and Luhansk. The rebels have claimed both cities.
[01:54.96]Ukraine's new government has offered substantial self-rule for the two regions. 
[02:02.29]But President Petro Poroshenko said the government 
[02:07.07]will not go as far as Russia and the rebels want.
[02:11.39]The leaders of Germany and France launched this latest effort 
[02:17.44]to end the conflict in Ukraine's east. 
[02:20.78]They did so in an effort to stop the offensive by the rebels 
[02:27.02]and avoid the possibility of United States arms sales to Ukraine.
[02:33.00]French President Francois Hollande said there is agreement 
[02:38.86]on a political settlement of the nearly one-year-old Ukraine crisis. 
[02:44.61]But he said all the details have yet to be negotiated.
[02:50.42]German Chancellor Angela Merkel sounded less hopeful. 
[02:55.80]She said the ceasefire agreement gives hope for a solution, 
[03:01.21]but leaves a lot of work to do. 
[03:04.03]She described the agreement as better than none at all.
[03:09.27]Reports say the talks nearly broke down 
[03:13.37]when rebel leaders refused to give up gains their forces had made in recent weeks. 
[03:20.64]But Mr. Hollande said President Putin pressed the separatist leaders to agree.
[03:27.77]At least 5,300 people have been killed in the Ukrainian conflict. 
[03:34.99]On Friday, Ukraine's military reported that 11 soldiers 
[03:40.86]were killed in eastern Ukraine over the past 24 hours.
[03:45.56]Yaroslav Voitko is with the International Center for Policy Studies in Kyiv. 
[03:52.47]He says Ukraine is not willing to give the rebels any more territory 
[03:59.34]than they have already captured. 
[04:01.95]The land is said to represent only about a third of what they want.
[04:08.56]"It's not about another kilometer of territory. 
[04:12.78]It's the matter of principle. 
[04:14.73]We will not agree to any further captures of our territories, 
[04:21.63]but some compromise can be reached in the meantime 
[04:25.50]on the ceasefire and stopping hostilities."
[04:28.69]I'm Christopher Cruise.
[04:30.49]¸ü¶àÌýÁ¦Çë·ÃÎÊ51voa.com