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No breakthrough as Ukraine peace talk parties meet in Minsk amid worsening crisis
All
of the participants of the contact group on the Ukraine crisis –
OSCE representatives, Kiev, Moscow, and the Donbass region – have
met in Minsk. No new agreements have been reached, with the meeting
ending in a blame game between Kiev and the rebels.
31
January, 2015
The
meeting amid the deteriorating situation and intense fighting in
eastern Ukraine was held behind closed doors and lasted for over
three hours.
Ukraine
was represented by ex-President Leonid Kuchma. Viktor Medvedchuk,
leader of the 'Ukrainian Choice' political organization, also
participated as the contact group's special representative on
humanitarian issues. Others were Special Representative of the OSCE
Chairperson-in-Office, Heidi Tagliavini, and Russian ambassador to
Ukraine Mikhail Zurabov.
Kuchma,
Tagliavini and Zurabov have their signatures under the September
Minsk peace agreements, which stipulated ceasefire, withdrawal of
heavy artillery from the frontline and exchange of prisoners.
The
self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk have also sent their
envoys to Minsk - Denis Pushilin and Vladislav Deinego.
Representatives of the Donetsk and
Lugansk People's Republics Denis Pushilin (R) and Vladislav Deinego
answer journalists' questions at Minsk Airport, January 30, 2015.
(RIA Novosti/Viktor Tolochko)
Donetsk
representative Dmitry Pushilin also told the agency that the two
self-proclaimed republics are ready to comply with the previous Minsk
protocol and continue the talks. No new agreements have been reached,
with the sides only managing to voice their positions, Pushilin
added.
Kiev
representative Leonid Kuchma claimed that Saturday's talks were
wrecked by the Donbass side. The meeting had no results to help the
ceasefire, as "Aleksandr
Zakharchenko and Igor Plotnitsky, who originally signed the Minsk
documents, failed to attend, and their representatives only made
ultimatum-like statements,"
Kuchma told Interfax Ukraine. Kiev's position remains unchanged, with
Ukraine eager to comply with the previous agreements signed in Minsk
on September 5 and 19, he dded.
Plotnitsky
denied allegations that it was his side which wrecked the talks.
Kuchma
previously said he was only ready to have talks with the leaders of
the self-proclaimed republics - Aleksandr Zakharchenko and Igor
Plotnitsky.
“There
must be Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky. Those who signed the agreements
and who have some power,”
he said as cited by Segodnya.ua.
Donetsk
and Lugansk representatives said that the heads of the territories –
Zakharchenko and Plotnitsky - would only come to the meeting in case
of a halt in military actions and a new agreement ready and approved
by the envoys.
“After that they will be ready to come,” Pushilin said, as cited by TASS. “I guess the main argument in support of them now staying with their citizens, actually facing genocide, is yesterday’s shelling of people queuing for humanitarian aid [in Donetsk]. 12 people were killed as a result and 20 were injured.”
The
shelling of densely populated civilian areas in eastern Ukraine was
on Saturday condemned by
the Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine,
Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan.
“I
urge all sides to exercise maximum restraint, and fully assume their
responsibility to prevent further displacement and suffering, and to
redouble their efforts to reach a political settlement,”
said Apakan.
Vladimir
Putin, Angela Merkel, and Francois Hollande have discussed the
increased violence in southeastern Ukraine in a phone conversation,
the Kremlin's press service said on Saturday. The state leaders
expressed their hopes that an immediate ceasefire and heavy artillery
withdrawal will be key issues to be discussed at the contact group
meeting.
At
least 12 civilians were killed in Donetsk on Friday. The
self-proclaimed republic’s officials said Ukrainian troops shelled
the city from a neutral zone north of the airport. Kiev has blamed
rebels, describing the attack as an attempt to undermine the Minsk
peace talks.
On Saturday, Russian trucks carrying humanitarian aid to the Donbass region were accompanied from the Russia-Ukraine border by OSCE mission observers for the first time. Two convoys of over 170 trucks crossed the border, carrying over 1.5 tons of humanitarian aid including food, medicine, articles of daily necessity, and some building materials.
"At
the Matveev Kurgan crossing point of the border, the control of the
convoy was conducted by both sides, with the Ukrainian border service
using specially trained sniffer dogs. After passing the inspection
point, the convoy was accompanied by OSCE mission representatives,
who were also present during the unloading process,"
Russia Emergency Services official Aleksandr Lekomtsev told RT.
He
added that the dogs were used in the process for the first time, and
that there were no complaints or remarks regarding the cargo from the
Ukrainian side. The convoy was the 12th Emergency Services'
humanitarian aid delivery mission, with almost 15 tons of aid
previously supplied to the Donetsk and Lugansk regions from Russia.
Earlier
on Saturday Ukrainian Foreign Ministry official Evgeny Perebiynis
commented on the Russian aid convoys, saying the delivery of such aid
should be conducted according to accepted international practice and
with the approval of Ukraine's government. He added that previous aid
freight had been allegedly delivered "with
blatant violations of such rules,"
Interfax Ukraine reported. At the same time, the official said that
Ukraine is ready to accept humanitarian aid from foreign states and
international organizations.
According to the Defense Ministry of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, intense fighting in the region continued on Saturday. The Ukrainian army shelled territories near Donetsk more than 20 times on Saturday night, Eduard Basurin of the ministry told journalists, adding that two civilians were killed in the attacks.
Fighting
has also continued in one of the flash points in the region, in the
town of Debaltsevo, located some 55 kilometers (34 miles) from
Donetsk. According to Basurin, the Ukrainian army has been fighting
with local militia to break out of an entrapment and advance towards
the areas controlled by rebels. Kiev, which has up to 10,000
servicemen near Debaltsevo, denied that its troops are being trapped
in the town. Over 300 civilians were evacuated from there on Friday,
Kiev confirmed.
Potential conscripts evade draft, flee country amid escalation in E. Ukraine
The
most recent military draft in Ukraine has been described as
“problematic” by Kiev's army spokesman. The recruitment effort,
coming amid ever more intense fighting in the country’s east, sees
a lack of enthusiasm on the part of potential soldiers.
31
January, 2015
“The
fourth wave of mobilization is problematic,” Ukraine army
spokesman, Vladimir Talalay acknowledged on Saturday, according to
Tass. “The biggest difficulties are seen in Sumy, Kharkov,
Cherkassy, Ternopol, Zakarpatye and other regions.”
READ
MORE: New military draft starts in Ukraine amid intensified assault
on militia-held territories
The
comment comes as Ukraine’s Joint Staff reported of the first stage
of the draft – sending out conscription notices – being over. The
military warn of blacklisting deserters and passing on the
information to police.
A
little less than 7,500 Ukrainians are already facing criminal charges
for evading military service, the country’s Defence Ministry
announced on Saturday.
The
Ukrainian president’s adviser, Yury Biryukov, was more specific
earlier this week. He did cite preliminary draft statistics, showing
evasion was primarily a problem in western Ukraine, traditionally a
major source of anti-Russian sentiment.
According
to Biryukov’s figures, 57 percent of Ivano-Frankovsk potential
conscripts would not show up at enlistment offices, while 37 percent
fled Ukraine.
He
mentioned that local authorities in the Ternopol region were
sabotaging the draft, refusing to help distribute notices.
Ukrainian servicemen ride on an
armored personnel carrier (APC) at a checkpoint near the eastern
Ukrainian town of Debaltsevo in Donetsk region, December 24, 2014.
(Reuters/Valentyn Ogirenko)
Nineteen
percent of Volynskaya region men, bound to military service, cited
religious motives for not joining the army. Previously not more than
0.7 percent would use this pretext.
Mass reluctance to serve has not gone unnoticed by international monitors. Members of OSCE mission in Ukraine spoke to a city official and a volunteer battalion commander in Krivoy Rog, both sharing fears over draft evasion.
“According to the plan, about 800 individuals are supposed to be mobilized within a week. However, a considerable number of people are trying to avoid mobilization by various means, the interlocutors said,” the January 27 OSCE report reads.
“[The draft dodger] is a cowardly animal,” Biryukov’s angry Facebook post, deleted by now, concluded. “With his tail between his legs, he hides from the mobilisation, changes his phone number, he gathers his stuff and runs off to Hungary, Romania, Slovakia or Poland. And he sits there, happy that he is so clever”.
Mass reluctance to serve has not gone unnoticed by international monitors. Members of OSCE mission in Ukraine spoke to a city official and a volunteer battalion commander in Krivoy Rog, both sharing fears over draft evasion.
“According to the plan, about 800 individuals are supposed to be mobilized within a week. However, a considerable number of people are trying to avoid mobilization by various means, the interlocutors said,” the January 27 OSCE report reads.
“[The draft dodger] is a cowardly animal,” Biryukov’s angry Facebook post, deleted by now, concluded. “With his tail between his legs, he hides from the mobilisation, changes his phone number, he gathers his stuff and runs off to Hungary, Romania, Slovakia or Poland. And he sits there, happy that he is so clever”.
Ukraine’s
president signed a decree on Friday on additional measures to ensure
successful draft in 2015. A major provision is temporary restriction
on leaving the country for men, bound to military service.
Neither appeals to patriotism, nor threats, nor insults made Aleksey, a young man from Mariupol want to find himself on the battlefield. He’s one of those who chose to flee to Russia.
“We don’t want to fight, but nobody asks whether we want to or not,” Aleksey told RT’s Roman Kosarev. “Recently a friend of mine was on her way home from work, when the National Guards got on the bus. They told the women to leave the vehicle, and made the young men stay inside. And then they drove off somewhere. What do we need this war for? They’ll kill us and no one will are.”
Neither appeals to patriotism, nor threats, nor insults made Aleksey, a young man from Mariupol want to find himself on the battlefield. He’s one of those who chose to flee to Russia.
“We don’t want to fight, but nobody asks whether we want to or not,” Aleksey told RT’s Roman Kosarev. “Recently a friend of mine was on her way home from work, when the National Guards got on the bus. They told the women to leave the vehicle, and made the young men stay inside. And then they drove off somewhere. What do we need this war for? They’ll kill us and no one will are.”
Russia
welcomes Ukrainian mobilization evaders, President Vladimir Putin
said earlier this week, promising to legalize longer stays in Russia
for bound-to-service Ukrainians.
“They do it right, because they are just being pushed their under the bullets as cannon fodder,” he said. “According to the new law Ukrainian citizens can only stay in Russia for 30 days. They return, get snapped and sent out there under the bullets again. So, we are going to change something here.”
“They do it right, because they are just being pushed their under the bullets as cannon fodder,” he said. “According to the new law Ukrainian citizens can only stay in Russia for 30 days. They return, get snapped and sent out there under the bullets again. So, we are going to change something here.”
This
one is the fourth wave of mobilization since Kiev launched a military
operation against anti-government forces in eastern Ukraine. Each was
accompanied by massive protests from the draftees’ relatives.
“Noone
wants to send their children to war,"
a Ukrainian political analyst, Vladimir Kornilov, told Sputnik radio.
“Kiev
now recruits the young ones. And the young ones die. I think that
these sporadic protests, which now happen in villages and towns, will
eventually grow in size and get more organized.”
Kiev resumed its military operation in the east of Ukraine in January, following months of relative respite.
Reports of residential areas coming under fire have since come almost daily, with human rights organizations calling on both sides of the conflict to protect civilians.
Some 8,000 Ukrainian troops are currently believed to be surrounded near the village of Debaltsevo in Donbass, as militia units cut off the only road linking the pocket to Kiev-held territory.
READ MORE: Thousands of Ukrainian troops thought to be trapped in Donbass
Kiev resumed its military operation in the east of Ukraine in January, following months of relative respite.
Reports of residential areas coming under fire have since come almost daily, with human rights organizations calling on both sides of the conflict to protect civilians.
Some 8,000 Ukrainian troops are currently believed to be surrounded near the village of Debaltsevo in Donbass, as militia units cut off the only road linking the pocket to Kiev-held territory.
READ MORE: Thousands of Ukrainian troops thought to be trapped in Donbass
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