Poroshenko to announce imposition of martial law if Minsk talks fail

The Ukrainian authorities are preparing for the introduction of martial law in the event of failure of the meeting in Minsk and escalation of the situation in the east.

This was stated by President Petro Poroshenko during a government session, Censor.NET reports citing Ukrainska Pravda.

Poroshenko stressed that "whether we can stop the aggressor through diplomatic channels, or we will switch to a completely different mode depends on the results of the summit".

"And me and the government, and the Verkhovna Rada are ready to make a decision on the introduction of martial law on the entire territory of Ukraine," he said.

"In no case will I hesitate with this decision, if the irresponsible actions of the aggressor lead to further serious escalation of the conflict," he said.

"I am confident that our country will be able to defend itself and everyone will do everything possible for us to demonstrate that we will win. But I stress that I am the president of the peace and the situation in the Donbas cannot be solved by military means," he added.