As the civil unrest in the Ukraine continues, Russia warns that use of force in Eastern Ukraine could spark a civil war.
The takeover
Pro-Russian protestors have taken control of government buildings in three eastern Ukraine cities, Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv. Rebels in Donetsk have declared a “people’s republic” and called for a referendum on secession from the Ukraine. In a statement released on the official website Russia’s Foreign Ministry has called for “immediate cessation of any military preparations, which could lead to civil war.” The ministry has alleged that Ukrainian forces, with aid from the American forces, were preparing for a crackdown in Eastern Ukraine.
Acting President Oleksandr Turchynov’s office has reported that Ukrainian Special Forces have cleared armed protestors from the seized building in Donetsk. Ukraine’s interim Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Yarema has been quoted as saying Ukraine will not storm Donetsk’s regional administration building. The National Security and Defence has reported that protestors and police are negotiating.
Anti-terrorist operation
In the city of Kharkiv, an Interior Ministry spokeswoman has said that police have detained approximately 70 armed people after clearing a building in an “anti-terrorist” operation. The arrested were reported to have been armed with knives and batons and were taken to police detention centers in cities of Poltava and Zaporijya. They face charges relating to separatism, violence and taking part in mass protests.
In Luhansk, pro-Russian demonstrators remain armed and in the occupied government building. In response, Ukraine road police have set up checkpoints on the roads going to Luhansk. Turchynov claims “separatist groups coordinated by Russian special services” are behind the revolts and are trying to repeat the Crimean annexation.
The world’s concern
On April 15th political representatives at NATO are meeting to discuss recommendations for additional military measures. Some of the potential measures are shortening the response time of NATO forces in a crisis and providing military advisors to the Ukraine. Secretary of State John Kerry has said that recent developments are “contrived pretext for military intervention just as we saw in Crimea.” NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has urged Russia to step back saying “any further move into eastern Ukraine would represent a serious escalation, rather than the de-escalation that we all seek.”
Separatism Outlawed
Turchynov has announced that Russian separatists will be treated as “terrorists” and be prosecuted to the full force of the law. The Ukrainian parliament has also just voted to approve legislation outlawing groups and individuals who call for separatism. 230 of the 450 members of the Ukrainian parliament voted in favor of the bill, however all the members of the communist party abstained from voting. Petr Simonenkom,the leader of the Communist Party, started a fight before the vote by claiming that the demonstrators have not done anything different than what the current interim government has done and accused “nationalists” of starting the eastern Ukraine crisis. The disagreement was ended when a member of the far-right Svoboda party stopped Simonenko from speaking further.
Russia talks
Russia has told Ukraine to stop blaming it for Ukrainian problems and urged the Ukraine to set up a federal system where regions with ethnic Russian majorities have more autonomy. Russia has urged the Ukraine to begin talks on the subject of reforming the government. Moscow is also reported to have suggested involving Ukrainian presidential candidates in Russian, U.S. and EU talks on Ukraine. However, US officials have warned that further Russian intervention would lead to even stiffer economic than those already imposed after the Crimean annexation.