Kiev Willing To Cooperate With Moscow to Stabilize Situation At Border
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry sent a note to Moscow offering to carry out a set of mutual actions at the border regions between two countries in order to stabilize the situation there. According to Kiev, this is due to a sharp increase in activity of cross-border criminal groups there.
“Russian side is invited to immediately participate in a set of mutual actions on the state border and in the border regions in order to stabilize the situation on the Russian-Ukrainian state border. The lack of response from Russian side would be treated by Ukraine as a violation of obligations affirmed by appropriate bilateral agreements,” says the statement.
OSCE representative urges Ukrainians to compromise for sake of resolving crisis
The OSCE’s Special Envoy, Wolfgang Ischinger, on behalf of the organization, has urged Ukrainians to resolve the crisis through discussion rather than conflict. “Now I would like on behalf of the OSCE to appeal to all residents of Ukraine, to urge them make a compromise and by peaceful means only: Ukrainians, please, use words, not weapons!” Ischinger reached out to all residents of the country during the second National Unity roundtable held in Kharkov on Saturday.
Under the OSCE initiative, Kiev holds National Unity roundtables with the purpose of settling the situation in the East of Ukraine.
The first Ukrainian “National Unity roundtable” took place in Kiev on Wednesday. It was attended by acting President Turchynov and Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk appointed by the Verkhovna Rada, some presidential candidates and deputies, former presidents, and representatives of the Donetsk authorities appointed by Kiev. However, representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s republics, which declared independence on Monday as a result of the referendums on the status of the regions, did not participate in the discussion. The republics have launched the process of creating their own authorities.
The Kiev authorities are carrying out a special operation in Eastern Ukraine to suppress the protest movement, which emerged as a reaction to the change of power, which had taken place in the country on February 22 after several days of clashes in the center of Kiev and bore many of the hallmarks of a coup. The military operation has already resulted in dozens of dead and wounded. Moscow considers the new Ukrainian authorities’ decision to use the army against protesters to be an extremely dangerous turn of events.
650 Ukrainian soldiers killed, wounded in course of special operation – Slavyansk ‘people’s mayor‘
“People’s mayor” of Slavyansk, Vyacheslav Ponomarev, has said that law enforcement forces controlled by Kiev suffered severe losses during special operations in the South-East of Ukraine: according to his data, in just ten days, 650 people were killed or wounded, as stated in a message to RIA Novosti.
“The total losses of the punitive fascist Kiev junta during May 2 -12, 2014, amount to 650 killed and wounded, among whom are 285 Right Sector extremists, who joined the National Guard, 120 Ukrainian mercenaries <…>, 90 employees of the Security Service of Ukraine <…>, 70 foreign mercenaries,” said Ponomarev, whose speech was posted on the Internet by the press service of the DPR.
From May 2 to 12, losses among the militiamen amounted to 8 people, three more were wounded, Ponomarev added.
An ultimatum delivered by the militia of Donbass to Kiev expired on Thursday. It stated that if, in a 24 hours period, the Ukrainian military did not leave captured checkpoints in the Donetsk region, the militia would begin its own military operation.
The Kiev authorities are carrying out an operation in the East of Ukraine aimed at suppressing the protest movement, which has emerged as a reaction to the change of power, which occurred in the country on February 22 after several days of clashes in central Kiev and bore clear signs of a coup. The most violent confrontation took place in the city of Slavyansk, in the north of the Donetsk region, which is currently under
the control of the “people’s militia”, as well as in Kramatorsk and Mariupol.
Some 21 law enforcers killed since beginning of special op in southeastern Ukraine
A total of 21 law enforcers have been killed and 65 wounded since the beginning of the special operation in Southeastern Ukraine, according to Friday’s report by the UNIAN news agency, citing a source in the Ukrainian Security Service.
The death toll includes 18 members Ukraine’s Armed Forces, and three Ukrainian security service ‘Alfa unit’ officers. Among the injured, are 29 members of the Security Service, 27 soldiers and one medic, five internal troops, a police officer, and two National Guard members.
In addition, two soldiers of the Armed Forces are considered missing. Previously, Assistant Secretary General of the UN Human Rights Ivan Simonovic reported 127 killed in a special operation in the southeastern Ukraine.
The Ukrainian Defense Ministry earlier said that conscripted soldiers do not participate in special operations.
Donetsk volunteer guards take control of regional headquarters of National Guards
Volunteer guards from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic have taken control of the headquarters of the Eastern unit of Ukraine’s National Guard, a spokesman for the Donetsk People’s Republic told Itar-Tass over the phone late on Friday.
“They took the army unit 3037 building in Donetsk,” the spokesman said, as reported by Itar-Tass.
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