What’s new? The six-year-old war in Ukraine’s south east has split the Donbas region and torn its socio-economic fabric. In 2017, Kyiv banned trade with the Luhansk and Donetsk breakaway statelets, which seized Ukrainian industrial assets on the territory they control. The repercussions have harmed residents and may undermine prospects for reintegration. Why does it matter? Under the Minsk framework, peace will require Kyiv to reintegrate the breakaway regions while offering them a measure of political autonomy. Creating the conditions for Donbas’s successful economic reintegration will be crucial to a sustainable peace. What should be done? Kyiv should re-forge economic ties across the front line, including by expanding access to pensions for those in separatist-controlled territories and searching for ways to stimulate cross-line trade. It should also continue to plan and seek financial commitments for Donbas’s economic reintegration.
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