- Title: RUSSIA: Ukrainian separatist leader doubts President Petro Poroshenko's plan
- Date: 20th June 2014
- Summary: MOSCOW, RUSSIA (JUNE 20, 2014) (REUTERS) UKRAINIAN SEPARATIST LEADER OF SELF-PROCLAIMED DONETSK PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC, DENIS PUSHILIN, ARRIVING FOR NEWS CONFERENCE JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) LEADER OF SELF-PROCLAIMED DONETSK PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC, DENIS PUSHILIN, SAYING: "He (Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko) makes a lot of declarations, delivers a lot of public statements of different kind but does nothing. He has already talked about his peace plans, he has made statements about providing humanitarian (safe passage) corridors but what we saw the day after were buses with women and children under fire." JOURNALIST (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) LEADER OF SELF-PROCLAIMED DONETSK PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC, DENIS PUSHILIN, SAYING: "Kramatorsk and Slaviansk are the towns already facing humanitarian catastrophe. Other cities in the Luhansk and Donetsk people's republics are on the brink of catastrophe. It could happen any moment now because our enemy does not allow any food to get through. The humanitarian help from the Russian Federation -- and a lot of it has been collected -- is not allowed to get through the border." JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (Russian) LEADER OF SELF-PROCLAIMED DONETSK PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC, DENIS PUSHILIN, SAYING: "Nobody would currently be able to put an accurate figure to the number of refugees because a lot of people are ashamed to call themselves refugees, this word is alien to our ears. However, according to the Russian records the number of people who have entered the country for various sort of reasons - a lot of people describe the reasons as visiting friends or family though it is clear to everyone that they are refugees - has by now reached almost 400,000 people." JOURNALISTS NEWS CONFERENCE IN PROGRESS
- Embargoed: 5th July 2014 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Russian Federation
- Country: Russia
- Topics: Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA8N9JZDXDVYOY5DQL8VGX520HY
- Story Text: The Ukrainian separatist leader of self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, Denis Pushilin, said on Friday (June 20) that President Petro Poroshenko's peace plans aimed at resolving the crisis in the east of the country could not be trusted.
The uprising by the separatists, who oppose central rule by Kiev and seek union with Russia, began in April, the month after Russia annexed the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea from Ukraine.
The pro-Western authorities in Kiev accuse Russia of orchestrating the uprising in the east after the ouster of a president sympathetic to Moscow in February. The Kremlin denies it is behind the revolt.
New Ukrainian President Poroshenko has been working on a peace plan but has also intensified a military campaign to prise out the rebels since he was elected on May 25.
"He (Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko) makes a lot of declarations, delivers a lot of public statements of different kind but does nothing. He has already talked about his peace plans, he has made statements about providing humanitarian (safe passage) corridors but what we saw the day after were buses with women and children under fire," Pushilin told journalists at a news conference in Moscow.
Poroshenko on Friday announced a week-long ceasefire in the fight against pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country.
But he said government forces should defend themselves if, during that time, they came under attack from the rebels.
Poroshenko, who has said the declaration of a ceasefire will allow him formally to launch a peace plan for the region, spoke after receiving a report from an army commander that the border with Russia was defended.
In the meantime fighting in eastern Ukraine has caused shortages of food, water, medications and other essentials.
In the rebel stronghold town of Slaviansk electricity and water have been cut off, food is running low and half the population has fled.
Many of those who remain are getting desperate and local officials, echoed by Russia, warn that a humanitarian disaster is looming in east Ukraine as fighting intensifies between the rebels and government forces trying to prise them out.
"Kramatorsk and Slaviansk are the towns already facing humanitarian catastrophe. Other cities in the Luhansk and Donetsk people's republics are on the brink of catastrophe. It could happen any moment now because our enemy does not allow any food to get through. The humanitarian help from the Russian Federation -- and a lot of it has been collected -- is not allowed to get through the border," Pushilin said.
The conflict in eastern Ukraine caused thousands to flee the region.
Russia's federal migration service said on Friday that more than 400,000 Ukrainian citizens have left conflicted areas in Ukraine to enter Russia since March.
"Nobody would currently be able to put an accurate figure to the number of refugees because a lot of people are ashamed to call themselves refugees, this word is alien to our ears. However, according to the Russian records the number of people who have entered the country for various sort of reasons - a lot of people describe the reasons as visiting friends or family though it is clear to everyone that they are refugees - has by now reached almost 400,000 people," Pushilin added.
The rebels show no sign of surrendering but the fighting has taken its toll on them and on civilians, further alienating east Ukrainians and deepening the nation's divide.
The United Nations said this week 257 civilians had been killed since mid-April. The true toll is likely to be higher as many places have not been accessible to international monitors. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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