The self-declared leader of pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, Denis Pushilin, has said that he does not consider his men to be bound by an agreement between Russia and Ukraine to disarm and vacate occupied buildings.
" Lavrov did not sign anything for us, he signed on behalf of the Russian Federation," Pushilin, head of the self-declared Donetsk People's Republic, told journalists in Donetsk on Friday.
Pushilin said his men will only consider leaving public buildings when the government in Kiev does the same. He said he was continuing preparations for a referendum on increased autonomy from Kiev on May 11.
- His comments came a day after the United States, European Union, Russia and Ukraine reached an agreement in Geneva on immediate steps to be implemented to ease the crisis in Ukraine.
- Thursday’s agreement laid out concrete steps to "restore security for all citizens" and crucially urged "all illegal armed groups" to disarm and vacate "seized buildings".
It also puts on hold additional economic sanctions which the West had prepared to impose on Russia if the talks were fruitless, the AP news agency reported.
"All sides must refrain from any violence, intimidation or provocative actions," a joint statement issued after the Geneva talks said.
- The agreement also gives amnesty to protesters who comply with the demands, except those found guilty of capital crimes.
John Kerry, the US secretary of state, called the deal the result of a "good day's work" but emphasised that the words on paper must be followed by concrete actions.........[aljazeera.com]
18/4/14
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US Vice President Joe Biden will begin a two-day visit to Ukraine on Monday, hours after a fragile Easter truce was shattered and pro-Kremlin rebels in the country's east appealed for help from Russian "peacekeepers.".......
ReplyDeleteBiden's arrival in Kyiv comes after Kyiv and Moscow traded accusations over a deadly shooting on Easter Sunday morning, when at least three people were killed at a checkpoint manned by armed separatists.
Western-backed authorities in Kyiv claimed the violence was a set-up by Russia to create a pretext for it to send in troops...............http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/140421/biden-heads-ukraine-after-deadly-gunfight-easter-shatters-truce
21/4/14