Selon l’Otan, « la Russie a massé environ 20.000 soldats prêts au combat à la frontière orientale de l’Ukraine ». Une présence qui hypothèque une solution diplomatique de la crise dans cette partie du monde.
L’Otan ne cache pas, depuis plusieurs semaine, son inquiétude quant à la situation en Ukraine et l’attitude de la Russie. Et ce mercredi elle a manifesté son inquiétude quant à la présence d’une quantité importante de militaires russes non loin de la frontière.
« Nous n’allons pas deviner ce que la Russie a en tête mais nous pouvons observer ce que la Russie fait sur le terrain, et c’est une source de grande inquiétude. La Russie a massé environ 20.000 soldats prêts au combat à la frontière orientale de l’Ukraine », écrit Oana Lungescu, porte-parole de l’Otan, dans un communiqué.
Et d’ajouter que ce « renforcement militaire russe aggrave encore la situation et sape les efforts destinés à parvenir à une solution diplomatique à la crise. C’est une situation dangereuse. »
Le secrétaire général de l’Otan en Ukraine ce jeudi
Selon l’agence russe Ria Novosti, le secrétaire général de l’Otan Anders Fogh Rasmussen se rendra en Ukraine jeudi 7 août, avant le sommet de l’Alliance, prévu les 4 er 5 septembre au Pays de Galles.
L’agence cite une interview accordée à l’agence UNIAN par le délégué permanent ukrainien auprès de l’Otan, Igor Dolgov.
« Anders Fogh Rasmussen va s’entretenir avec les dirigeants ukrainiens qui évoqueront entre autres les problèmes d’actualité pour l’Ukraine et leur vision des perspectives de la coopération du pays avec l’Alliance », a expliqué Igor Dolgov.
Et d’ajouter qu’une réunion de la commission Ukraine-OTAN au niveau des chefs d’Etat et de gouvernement était prévue en marge du sommet.
Déjà en début de semaine à l’occasion d’une rencontre avec le Premier ministre britannique et le commandant suprême des forces alliées en Europe (SACEUR), Anders Fogh Rasmussen, secrétaire général de l’OTAN, avait exprimé ses craintes.
« Nous sommes à un point crucial de l’histoire : alors que nous nous remémorons les ravages causés par la Première Guerre mondiale, notre paix et notre sécurité sont une fois de plus remises en cause, aujourd’hui par l’agression de la Russie contre l’Ukraine. Et le tir criminel qui a abattu le vol MH17 a clairement montré qu’un conflit dans une partie de l’Europe peut avoir des conséquences tragiques dans le monde entier », avait-il notamment souligné à cette occasion.
Combats meurtriers autour de Donetsk
De fait, sur le terrain la situation reste dès plus tendue. Pour la première fois Donetsk, fief des séparatistes prorusses dans l’est de l’Ukraine, aurait subi mercredi une frappe aérienne.
C’est tout du moins ce qu’affirme la mairie dans un communiqué : « le district Kalininski (est) a subi dans la nuit une frappe aérienne qui a laissé un trou de 4 mètres de diamètre et de 1,5 mètre de profondeur sur la route. Un gazoduc a été endommagé par des éclats d’obus. Des démineurs travaillent sur place pour désactiver un obus non explosé ».....................http://www.lesechos.fr/monde/europe/0203687873524-ukraine-lotan-sinquiete-dune-eventuelle-intervention-russe-1030879.php?xtor=RSS37&Ubg4oW5OgT4GrUP6.996/8/14
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- Ukraine Military: 18 Soldiers Killed in Fighting Near Donetsk
Spokesman, Andriy Lysenko, said government forces had clashed with separatists 25 times in parts of eastern Ukraine near the Russian border in the 24 hours up to Wednesday morning as they continued to squeeze rebel positions.
Ukrainian forces, Lysenko said, had again been shelled from inside Russian territory while Ukrainian frontier guards near the border town of Luhansk had come under a four-hour mortar and artillery attack.
“In the past 24 hours 18 service personnel have been killed in battle and 54 have been wounded,” he told journalists, saying casualties had been sustained in several different incidents in the east.
Airstrikes near Donetsk
Meanwhile, residents in Donetsk, east Ukraine's main industrial hub and now the main redoubt of the rebels, said Ukrainian warplanes had carried out airstrikes overnight.
The airstrike hit the Kalininsky neighborhood only 5 kilometers (3 miles) east of Donetsk's central square. It was the first airstrike to hit close to the center of Donetsk since Ukrainian forces heavily bombarded the airport in May in their bid to halt the insurgency in the industrial east of the country.
Lysenko, questioned over the reports, denied that Ukrainian planes had carried out airstrikes on the town of nearly 1 million and said the only Ukrainian plane near the town had been an aircraft providing communications support for troops on the ground.
Previously, Kyiv has accused the rebels of firing at civilian areas. But the government has offered little evidence to prove their claims, which Human Rights Watch and others have questioned.
“The Ukrainian military does not bomb the towns of Donetsk and Luhansk or any other similar populated places,” he said.
The rebels said the strike occurred at 12:40am (2140 GMT).
But the strike came as Kyiv signaled a harder push to retake the disputed area.
On Wednesday, the spokesman for the Ukrainian operation in the east, Oleksiy Dmitrashkivsky, told the French news agency AFP: "The noose is tightening around Donetsk, Lugansk and Gorlivka," the main rebel strongholds.
"Our forces are regrouping, maneuvering and engineers are strengthening the fortification of roadblocks, preparing for the liberation of these cities," he added.
Military losses
Ukraine's military has made major advances over the past month and says it has almost cut off Donetsk from the Russian border and second rebel bastion of Lugansk.
But amid these advances government forces have continued to face heavy bombardments. Wednesday's announcement that 18 soldiers had been killed and 54 injured in fighting over the past 24 hours was the highest daily toll in weeks.
Three civilians were also killed overnight amid shelling on different suburbs of Donetsk, the city council said. This included two deaths already announced Tuesday evening.
Government troops have been battling the rebels since April in the Russian-speaking east in a conflict which the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights says has cost the lives of more than 1,100 people, including government forces, rebels and civilians.
The Red Cross has labeled the conflict in east Ukraine a civil war.......................................http://www.voanews.com/content/ukraine-military-18-soldiers-killed-in-fighting-near-donetsk/1972708.html
6/8/14 --
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Russian fighter-bombers fly along northern sea route at first time...
ReplyDeleteA squadron of fighter-bombers Sukhoi Su-34 of the Western Military District has flown along the Northern Sea Route on Wednesday for the first time, chief press officer of the military district Colonel Oleg Kochetkov told ITAR-TASS.
“Flights were made over the area of the Barents Sea and the Kara Sea. Each crew has made two aerial refuellings, flying more than five thousand kilometres,” Kochetkov said.
He noted that crews had made refuelling in a pair simultaneously. “The performance of the hardest flight training operation - aerial refuelling - was complicated with strong gusty winds traditional for this season in high latitudes. All crews coped successfully with all tasks set at this stage of war games,” the military district’s spokesman said.
Earlier on Wednesday, Russian Air Force Chief Commander Lieutenant General Viktor Bondarev named drills in the Arctic as the top goal of large-scale military exercises of Air Force and Air Defense Forces in Russia’s southern Astrakhan region. He added that military exercises should drill a long-range interception by fighters, meanwhile, warplanes will act up to the 82nd parallel north.
http://en.itar-tass.com/russia/743792
Nato befürchtet russischen Einmarsch in Ostukraine...
ReplyDelete"Wir sehen, was Russland macht – und das erfüllt uns mit großer Sorge": Die Nato wirft Moskau angesichts des Aufmarschs von 20.000 Soldaten an der Grenze zur Ukraine eine Eskalation der Krise vor.
In Europa wächst die Furcht vor einem Einmarsch russischer Truppen in der Ostukraine. Die Nato beschuldigte die Regierung in Moskau am Mittwoch, die Krise durch den Aufmarsch von rund 20.000 kampfbereiten Soldaten im Grenzgebiet weiter eskalieren zu lassen.
Man teile die Sorge, dass Russland unter dem Vorwand eines humanitären oder friedenssichernden Einsatzes Truppen in das Nachbarland entsenden könnte, sagte eine Sprecherin des Militärbündnisses. Auch Polens Ministerpräsident Donald Tusk warnte vor einer Invasion Russlands in der Ostukraine. Die Bundesregierung forderte von der Regierung in Moskau, alles zu unterlassen, was zu einer weiteren Eskalation beitrage. Bei Kämpfen gegen die prorussischen Separatisten in der Region wurden nach Angaben der ukrainischen Armee 18 Soldaten getötet.
Nach Angaben eines hochrangigen Nato-Militärangehörigen hat Russland seit Anfang des Monats im Grenzgebiet zur Ukraine Panzer, Infanterie, Artillerie, Luftabwehrsysteme sowie Truppen zur logistischen Unterstützung zusammengezogen. Auch Spezialkräfte und verschiedene Einheiten der Luftwaffe seien vor Ort.
Die Nato-Sprecherin gab Russland die Schuld an einer Verschlechterung der humanitären Lage in der Ostukraine: "Russland lässt den Zustrom von Waffen und Kämpfern über die Grenze zu. Der Konflikt wird durch Russland angeheizt. Wir sehen, was Russland macht – und das erfüllt uns mit großer Sorge." Die Regierung in Moskau bestreitet das.
Luftangriff in Donezk
Am Morgen sagte Polens Ministerpräsident Donald Tusk, in den vergangenen Stunden habe er Informationen erhalten, dass die Gefahr einer direkten Intervention Russlands in der Ukraine stark gestiegen sei. Schon am Dienstagabend hatte sein Außenminister Radoslaw Sikorski in deutlichen Worten gewarnt: Die russische Armee habe ihre Gefechtsbereitschaft in der Grenzregion zur Ukraine wiederhergestellt, dort stünden mehrere Bataillone bereit. Diese sollten "nur Druck ausüben. Oder einmarschieren.".........................http://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article130929437/Nato-befuerchtet-russischen-Einmarsch-in-Ostukraine.html
Russia will soon introduce a series of protective economic measures "in a tough, persistent and active manner" to counter Western sanctions, Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said Wednesday....
ReplyDelete"All our measures will be aimed, primarily, at protecting our economy, including in the space industry," Rogozin told reporters during a visit to a major space corporation.
Earlier on the day, the official said by imposing sanctions, the West was "shooting themselves in the foot."
"You may lose a market in an hour, but it may take decades to restore," RIA Novosti news agency quoted him as saying.
http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/874683.shtml
Russia Slams US Accusations of Amassing Military on Ukraine Border as Ungrounded, Pathetic...
ReplyDeleteMOSCOW, August 6 (RIA Novosti) – Pentagon and NATO attempts to accuse Russia of building up troops near the border with Ukraine are groundless and resemble “an auction to sell soap bubbles,” the Russian Defense Ministry said Wednesday.
“The Russian Defense Ministry can only feel sorry for Pentagon, US Department of State and NATO officials, who have to constantly improvise in order to make their allegations believable,” ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said.
“Their frequent remarks about the movement of additional Russian troops to the border with Ukraine resemble an auction to sell soap bubbles, when the most important thing is to get the highest price before the bubble bursts,” Konashenkov said.
“We would like to explain that it is impossible to move thousands of troops with weapons and military equipment so quickly and without being noticed by OSCE observers deployed in the region,” the spokesman added.
On Tuesday, Pengaton spokesman John Kirby said Russia had amassed 10,000 troops on the border with Ukraine.
Shortly after, NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow said 20,000 servicemen were already there. On Wednesday, NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu made the same statement and added that NATO is concerned that Russia could send troops into eastern Ukraine under the “pretext” of a humanitarian or peacekeeping mission.
The West has repeatedly accused Russia of building up forces on its border with eastern Ukraine and supplying independence supporters with weapons, a claim Moscow has rejected.
On July 27 the Russian Defense Ministry said in the past four months 18 international inspection teams have visited the areas in Russia bordering Ukraine under the Vienna Document of 2011 and the Treaty on Open Skies and found “no violations or undeclared military activity.” Russian President Vladimir Putin said that before accusing Moscow real evidence must be shown.
http://en.ria.ru/military_news/20140806/191785131/Russia-Slams-US-Accusations-of-Amassing-Military-on-Ukraine.html
6/8/14
Russia on Wednesday (Aug 6) denied US and NATO claims that Moscow has sharply increased the number of troops along the border with Ukraine....
ReplyDelete"I would like to explain to Pentagon and NATO officials that movements of such forces of thousands of troops and equipment is not possible in such a short time, moreover without OSCE monitors stationed in the region noticing," Russian defence ministry spokesman Igor Konashenikov was quoted as saying by Interfax news agency.
NATO spokeswoman Oana Lungescu said earlier on Wednesday that Russia has increased its presence of troops on the Ukraine border to 20,000, from 12,000 in mid-July.
The Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe has about about a dozen observers monitoring two Russian border posts, but does not monitor the entire border. It has a larger mission stationed inside Ukraine, where pro-Russian rebels are battling government forces.
The European Union and United States have accused Moscow of providing weapons and support to the rebels, a charge Moscow denies.
Konashenikov said the Russian defence ministry was considering opening social media accounts to provide the US intelligence community with "objective information about the actions of Russian military forces".
- AFP/ec
http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/world/russia-denies-deploying/1299916.html
Vladimir Putin had a telephone conversation with Federal Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel on the German side’s initiative....
ReplyDeleteThe two leaders continued their exchange of views on the development of the acute crisis situation in Ukraine. Mr Putin paid special attention to the incessant military operations by the Ukrainian security agencies in southeast Ukraine that lead to the loss of many lives and escalation of humanitarian problems. The President of Russia stressed that the authorities in Kiev are responsible for the resulting situation.
The two heads of state positively assessed the resumption of work by the Contact Group, as well as the work of the recently deployed OSCE observer mission at the Donetsk and Gukovo checkpoints on the Russian-Ukrainian border. The Russian side noted the importance of establishing a real political dialogue between the authorities in Kiev and representatives from protesting regions.
Mr Putin and Ms Merkel agreed to continue dialogue on Ukrainian issues at various levels.
http://eng.kremlin.ru/news/22782