US slams eastern Ukraine vote

Sat, 01 Nov 2014 6:27 AM
Ukrainian servicemen comb the area after being shot at by pro-Russian militants at their check-point near the small city of Dzerzhynsk, in the Donetsk region, on August 28, 2014. Credit: AFP
Ukrainian servicemen comb the area after being shot at by pro-Russian militants at their check-point near the small city of Dzerzhynsk, in the Donetsk region, on August 28, 2014. Credit: AFP    

The United States said on Friday it would not recognise weekend elections planned by pro-Kremlin rebels in eastern Ukraine, while hailing a breakthrough energy deal between Kyiv and Moscow.

France, Germany, the European Union and the transatlantic NATO alliance have also condemned Sunday’s leadership vote in Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions.

“We deplore the intent of separatists in parts of eastern Ukraine to hold illegitimate so-called local ‘elections’ on Sunday,” White House National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said in a statement.

“If held, these ‘elections’ would contravene Ukraine’s constitution and laws and the September 5 Minsk Protocol.”

The United States has said it would, however, recognise a December 7 vote planned in the region and backed by the international community.

In a four-way call earlier, the leaders of Ukraine, Germany and France urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to not recognise the polls.

Moscow has already welcomed the polls but Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said they would hurt the shaky peace process in the six-and-a-half month conflict that has killed over 3700 people.

“We call on Russia to join the Secretary General of the United Nations, the European Union, the Council of Europe and the international community in condemning the illegitimate vote planned for this weekend,” Meehan said.

“The United States will not recognise any results announced from this so-called election, and we call on all members of the international community to do the same.”

She cautioned Russia against using such a vote “as a pretext to insert additional troops and military equipment into Ukraine, particularly in light of recent indications that the Russian military is moving forces back to the border along separatist controlled areas of eastern Ukraine.”

At the State Department, spokesperson Jen Psaki also warned that the United States was still concerned about the “illegitimate and illegal” weekend elections.

“These elections violate the letter and spirit of the September 5th Minsk ceasefire agreement, which calls for elections in the east in line with the Ukrainian law on special status,” Psaki said.

 

Gas deal is ‘positive step’

Kyiv reached a breakthrough deal with Moscow late on Thursday brokered by the European Union in Brussels to resolve their long conflict over energy supplies.

In the agreement published by Ukraine’s government, Kyiv must pay the first tranche of its debt ($1.45-billion) before any gas deliveries are resumed and the full amount of $3.1-billion by the end of the year in order to receive gas in 2015.

“The agreement is a positive step,” Psaki said.

“We welcome news of an EU-brokered gas deal between Russia and Ukraine that will secure gas to Ukraine, and ultimately the rest of Europe, through the upcoming winter.”

AFP