From the BBC:
"Ukraine's new defence minister promises Crimea victory"
New Ukrainian Defence Minister
Valeriy Heletey has promised that the army would retake Crimea, restoring the
country's territorial integrity. Addressing parliament in Kiev, he said: "There will be a victory parade... in
Ukraine's Sevastopol." Russia annexed the peninsula - which has a Russian-speaking majority - in
March after a controversial referendum. In eastern Ukraine, a government offensive against pro-Russian separatists is
continuing. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande have
urged Russian President Vladimir Putin in a conference call to use his influence
to put pressure on the rebels in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Mr Putin said he was "deeply concerned about the rise in deaths among the
civilian population and sharp increase in refugees" entering Russia from
south-eastern Ukraine, according to the Kremlin. All three leaders agreed that the Organization for Security and Co-operation
in Europe (OSCE) should play a more active part in monitoring the situation in
the conflict zone. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko later said he was ready to return to a
ceasefire provided it was observed by both sides, all hostages were freed and
borders secured by government forces. His statement came after he spoke on the phone with US Vice-President Joe
Biden. Mr Poroshenko called off a unilateral truce on 30 June, accusing the
rebels of staging deadly attacks on Ukrainian government troops. Lt Gen Heletey, 46, was approved by MPs in Kiev after being recommended by Mr
Poroshenko as someone who would work day and night to restore the military
capability of the country's armed forces. His remark about Sevastopol was applauded by the chamber. The status of the city, home port of Russia's Black Sea Fleet for centuries,
was disputed by Russia long before it annexed Crimea. A new chief of the general staff, Viktor Muzhenko, was also appointed on
Thursday. Since the re-launch of the "anti-terrorist operation", at least five
government soldiers have been killed and 28 wounded. At least 250 civilians killed in eastern Ukraine since April, according to
Ukrainian and rebel reports Nearly 200 soldiers killed and 619 wounded since April, according to
Ukrainian defence ministry At least 800 rebels killed since April, according to rebels At least 110,000 people have left Ukraine for Russia this year to date, most
of them from eastern regions, according to the UN Some 54,400 people have been displaced within Ukraine itself, the UN says Rebels in Luhansk accused government forces of killing civilians in the
village of Luhanska on Wednesday. District mayor Volodymyr Bilous told Ukrainian news agency UNN that warplanes
had bombed the area, killing nine and injuring 11. Another report spoke of 12
deaths. As amateur videos emerged of burning houses and dead bodies, the Ukrainian
military denied attacking the village with artillery or aircraft and blamed the
rebels instead. Rebels in Donetsk reported fresh heavy fighting with troops backed by tanks
and planes in the village of Mykolayivka on Thursday, with an unknown number of
casualties. Three traffic policemen were shot dead overnight in the city of Donetsk. Separately, Ukraine's border guards said Russian army helicopters violated
Ukrainian air space in the Luhansk region. The violence erupted in April when separatists declared independence in the
Donetsk and Luhansk regions. In November, Ukraine's President Viktor Yanukovych decided, under pressure
from Russia, not to sign an agreement with the EU, leading to street protests in
Kiev and his eventual overthrow. President Poroshenko signed the free trade part of the EU deal in Brussels
last Friday, after earlier signing the political co-operation clauses.
^ While I think the Ukrainians and their military are doing the best they can considering the ethnic Russian militants in eastern Ukraine are being supplied by Russia I don't think the Ukraine will get the Crimea back with force. The best they can hope for is putting pressure on European and world organizations to have them put pressure on Russia to give back their territory. ^
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-28144334
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.