generalspeaking

Struggling Ukraine

"Ending the cease-fire, this is our answer to terrorists, armed insurgents and looters, to all who mock the peaceful population, who are paralyzing the economy of the region ... who are depriving people of a normal, peaceful life."
"The unique chance to put the peace plan into action was not realized. This happened because of the criminal actions of the fighters."
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko

"I was driving and some people appeared with automatic weapons. They put me and my girlfriend on the ground and then they said: 'Run away from here!'
"I don't know who is fighting whom. We are standing here. We are afraid and shaking."
Vitaly (last name withheld in fear), Donetsk, Ukraine

When Mr. Poroshenko announced the unilateral ceasefire was over late Monday, the Ukrainian military resumed artillery and air strikes against separatist positions, according to Defence Ministry spokesman Oleksiy Dmytrashkovsky. Mr. Dmytrashkovsky said one service member was killed and 17 wounded in the previous 24 hours, and that a military jet was damaged.

A day later there was a  response. Donetsk, capital of Ukraine's eastern industrial heartland came under attack from Russian-speaking rebels attacking the regional Interior Ministry headquarters which they eventually captured, leaving the body of a police officer outside the compound.


Sergei Kavtaradze, speaking for the insurgents in Donetsk claimed the attack was launched by militants from the Luhansk region. The regional police have peacefully coexisted with the rebels though remaining officially responsible to the central government in Kyiv, and were housed in the Interior Ministry compound.


Some 30 kilometres northwest of Donetsk residents witnessed government forces and rebels firing heavy weapons across a bridge hours after the expiration of the ceasefire. "There was shooting near the water. Even the water was splattering. We know when they are just shooting to scare and when they are shooting to kill", said Inna Vladimirovna, nervous of being identified.

During the ceasefire period when President Poroshenko offered forgiveness for any rebels not involved in violence, with safe passage to exit Ukraine for Russia if they so desired, the rebels chose not to comply with any of the set terms much less surrender their weapons. They expressed defiance of President Putin's purported efforts to end the violence directed against Kyiv, while still maintaining through spokesmen they were "Nazis".

The ill-equipped and poorly-trained Ukrainian military has been unsuccessful in its efforts to dislodge rebels within the city of Slovyansk, holding it under occupation of their newly declared state, nor has it been able to retake control of three key border crossings with Russia. During the ceasefire period, rebels shot down a government military transport at the cost of the lives of 49 service members.

Vladimir Putin speaks of support of both sides laying down arms and coming to a bargaining table, while at the same time covertly supplying the rebels with arms and allowing both weapons and Russian and Chechen fighters to cross the border into Ukraine, claiming any Russians who happen to wander across the border do so as private citizens, Moscow has not dispatched them on any ulterior mission, heavens no.



 Rebels however, according to Ukraine's interior minister, were surrendering in some areas of Kyiv's "anti-terrorist operation", some asking for the opportunity to put down their arms and leave those areas surrounded by government forces. A spokesman for Alexander Borodai, the 'prime minister' of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic repudiated any such incidents, confirming reports of firefights in the city of Donetsk.

On the Donetsk People's Republic Twitter account reports that a tank battle was taking place in the city of Karlovka were denied. Government forces, according to them, had fired Grad rockets at rebel positions. Reports of fighting in the Lugansk region near the Russian border on Tuesday have also surfaced.

Igor Strelkov, Russian rebel commander in the city of Slavyansk claimed that many civilians had been wounded when government forces shelled several villages around the besieged city overnight, though no rebels had come to harm.

NATO satellite images indicate three tanks had crossed the border from Russia last month. Donetsk and Lugansk leaders have both declared they are in possession of tanks. Russian tanks? Heavens, not at all!

Labels: Aggression, Conflict, Hypocrisy, Russia, Secession, Ukraine

posted by Pieface @ Wednesday, July 02, 2014