Austrian minister says Minsk accord best chance to solve Ukraine crisis

Austrian Foreign and Integration Minister Sebastian Kurz attends a news conference in Vienna July 28, 2014. Kurz presented Austria's 2014 integration report to the public. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The Minsk agreement to end fighting in eastern Ukraine is the biggest chance to solve Ukraine crisis peacefully and European leaders should not declare it has failed, Austria's foreign minister said on Monday.

"I think in spite of its laboriousness and delays, there have been slight improvements and I think that we have to be aware that Minsk is the only tool we have. Minsk is the biggest chance for a peaceful solution," Austria's foreign minister Sebastian Kurz said ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels.