Local Editor
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that Ukraine is facing a “fratricidal war,” criticizing the Western countries for pushing Ukraine into the crisis.
“The people (of Ukraine) are in essence being pushed into the abyss of fratricidal war,” Lavrov said on Wednesday.
He accused the West of seeking to use Ukraine as a “watershed” rather than a “uniting [point] on the European territory.”
The top Russian diplomat further called for an end to the Kiev authorities’ military operations against pro-Moscow protesters in the southeastern part of Ukraine.
Moreover, during a telephone conversation with US Secretary of State John Kerry on Wednesday, Lavrov repeated his call for a halt in the Kiev army’s “punitive” actions and urged a “nationwide dialogue” between the two sides involved in the Ukrainian crisis.
The acting government in Kiev has been staging military operations in the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine since mid-April in a bid to root out pro-Moscow protests. The Ukrainian army launched a new crackdown on the pro-Russian stronghold of Donetsk on May 26. The assault, which targeted locations such as Sergei Prokofiev Airport in the city, has reportedly left dozens killed.
Ukraine’s President-elect Petro Poroshenko has ruled out negotiating with the pro-Russia activists, vowing to continue the military operations in the country’s southeastern provinces.
– See more at: http://en.alalam.ir/news/1598276#sthash.pkbf9TGQ.dpuf
