Russia says Ukraine’s offensive in Slovyansk ‘destroyed’ any hope for peace; 31 …
Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the fatal fire was “yet another manifestation of the criminal irresponsibility of the Kyiv authorities who indulge insolent radical nationalists … which are engaging in a campaign of physical terror� against those in Ukraine who want more autonomy for the pro-Moscow regions.
A spokesman for Russian President Vladimir Putin said the Ukrainian offensive “effectively destroyed the last hope for the implementation of the Geneva agreement� of two weeks ago that aimed to defuse the crisis. But Dmitry Peskov also said Russia “continues to undertake consistent efforts on de-escalation.�
In Washington, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and U.S. President Barack Obama warned that Russia could be hit by new sanctions from the U.S. and the European Union if it continues disruptive actions in Ukraine. Previous sanctions are showing signs of significant effect on the Russian economy.
The fighting in Slovyansk, a city about 160 kilometres from the Russian border, broke out around dawn. Stella Khorosheva, a spokeswoman for the insurgents, said three fighters and two civilians were killed in the clashes.
The Russian state television channel Rossiya-24 showed one man who they said was a wounded helicopter pilot surrounded by pro-Russia forces.
Several foreign news crews, meanwhile, were detained for several hours Friday by nervous pro-Russia militia before being released. CBS reported that one journalist was beaten.
Slovyansk is strategically key because Ukraine has a huge stockpile of automatic rifles and other light weapons near the city, according to a commentary Friday for Britain’s Royal United Services Institute defence think-tank.
“Today, Kyiv has upped the ante in the standoff and will test Russian resolve to prevent the Ukrainian government from regaining control of the city and its light weapons stockpile,� the think-tank authors wrote.
Turchynov said some government troops and police in eastern Ukraine were “either helping or co-operating with terrorist organizations.� He said Ukrainian forces were working to prevent the unrest from spreading other areas.
At Russia’s request, the UN Security Council met in an emergency session Friday on Ukraine.
Russian ambassador Vitaly Churkin demanded a “swift halt of all violence,� but Western powers scoffed at his country’s indignation.
“Russia … has released bands of thugs on Ukraine … and is suddenly discovering this mixture might escape its control,� French ambassador Gerard Araud said.
Ukraine, a nation of 46 million, is torn between those in the west who favour closer ties with Europe and many Russian-speakers in the east who look toward Moscow. Separatists who have seized government buildings in at least 10 eastern cities amid fears that Moscow is seeking a pretext to invade or annex more territory like it did with Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in March.
The peace deal in Geneva last month aimed to get those who had seized government buildings in Ukraine to leave and calm down the tensions that have prompted the United States and the European Union to slap Russia with rounds of sanctions.
The Russian Foreign Ministry accused Ukraine’s government of using “terrorists� from ultranationalist organizations for Friday’s military operation. It also claimed that Kyiv deployed tanks and helicopters that were “conducting missile strikes on protesters,� something that neither side in Ukraine reported.
An AP crew also saw no evidence of missile strikes in Slovyansk.
Russia also cited insurgents in Ukraine as saying that some of the government attackers spoke English — an insinuation that the Ukrainian military was getting some help from the West.
TV crews from Sky News and CBS were detained Friday on the outskirts of Slovyansk. Sky News said in a statement its crew was detained for several hours but is now “safe and well.�
CBS correspondent Clarissa Ward told “CBS This Morning� that she and her crew were stopped by pro-Russia insurgents at a checkpoint just outside Slovyansk, then taken to a nearby town where they were blindfolded tightly with masking tape. They were released several hours later, unharmed except for one man who was beaten.
Kyiv’s interim government came to power after Yanukovych fled, drummed out by months of anti-government protests. Ukraine plans to hold a new presidential election on May 25.