|
Violence Erupts in Eastern Ukraine
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
May 2, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
Growing more dangerous by the minute, violence spread from Eastern
Ukraine to the Black Sea port of Odessa, killing at least 40 Ukrainian loyalists
in an inferno that engulfed a trade union building. Acting 49-year-old Ukrainian
Presdient Oleksandr Turchinov also acknowledged that a helicopter was downed in
Slovyansk by Russian separatists with a surface-to-air missile, killing at least
two Urkainian soldiers. Turchinov
claimed that insurgents suffered significant casualties as the Ukrainian
military made a new push to reclaim Ukrainian buildings and towns seized by
pro-Russian separatists seeking close ties with Moscow. “Our security forces are fighting
mercenaries of foreign states, terrorists and criminals, “ said Oleksandr,
sending a loud call for help to President Barack Obama and German Chancellor
Angela Merkel in Washington.
Insisting that Ukrainian military regained control from insurgents,
terrorists and criminals, Oleksandr painted the problem a one of foreign
invaders in Ukraine. Both sides
trade propaganda about the spiraling civil war.
Pro-Russian forces claim the only foreign fighters come from the U.S. and
European Union that backed a Feb. 22 coup toppling the duly elected government
of now exiled Viktor Yanukovich.
Ukrainian officials accuse foreigners, mainly Russians and pro-Russian-speaking
Ukrainians, of fomenting unrest in Eastern Ukraine. Kiev’s post-revolutionary leaders,
while enjoying U.S. and EU backing, lack the support in Eastern Ukraine, home to
the country’s most industrialized cities.
Ukrainian officials insist that forces encountered “highly skilled
foreign military men,” said Turinov, insisting the Russian army was directly
involved in fighting Kiev’s forces.
With a population of 125,000, Slovyansk was bound to get sucked into the
battle between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian separatists. Turchinov insists that the Ukrainian
army recaptured key Slovyansk checkpoints around the city, while pro-Russians
separatists claim they controlled the city.
Moving the violence 550 kilometers [330 miles] to the Black Sea port of
Odyessa in the Southeast, Turchinov sent a loud message to Putin that he intends
to seize back control. Responding
to new Ukrainian government attacks, Moscow sounded pessimistic about prospect
for peace. Saying that Ukrainian
aggression, “effectively destroyed the last hope for the implementation of the
Geneva agreements,” Putin spokesman Dmitry Peskov signaled that Russia was
losing its patience. When Russian
lost it patience in 2008, it annexed South Ossetia and Abkhazia, 20% of Georgia.
Meeting at the White House, President Barack Obama and German Chancellor
Angela Merkel tried to reassure Moscow that the U.S. and EU backed a the peace
plan negotiated in Geneva April 17.
Two weeks later violence spread from Slovyansk to the historic Black Sea port of
Odessa. As civil war spreads across
Ukraine, it’s clear that Kiev’s new post-revolutionary leaders don’t have the
backing of all Ukrainians, certainly not the ones living in Eastern Ukraine. Since seizing Kiev from Yanukovich
Feb. 22, pro-Russian factions in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine want nothing to do
with Kiev’s pro-Western government. Instead of dreaming up new sanctions in Washington, Obama and Merkel should pressure
Turchinov and Yatsenyuk to resign, paving way to better relations. So far, Washington has shown
no signs accepting the Russian perspective that Kiev lacks legitimacy.
Sending tanks and helicopters to reclaim Ukrainian territory, Turchinov
and Yatsenyuk roll the dice, hoping Putin faces enough sanctions, restraining
him from taking action in Eastern Ukraine.
Apart from seizing Crimea March 1, Putin has shown restraint in Eastern
Ukraine. Upping he violence risks a
new response from Putin that has some 40,000 Russian troops stationed along the
Ukrainian border. “We are ready to
negotiate with protesters and their representatives,” said Ukrainian Interior
Minister Arsen Avakov, giving the impression the Ukrainian military was in
control. Meeting fierce resistance
in Slovyansk, no one in the Ukrainian military believes that pro-Russian
separatists are ready to roll over. Telling Russian-backed insurgents
that they’re surrounded and should surrender in Slovyansk, the Ukrainian
military has little confidence it can prevail in Eastern Ukraine.
Ukraine’s violence in Eastern Ukraine signals that Kiev’s
post-revolutionary leaders believe it’s now or never to recapture lost
territory. Despite warnings from
Putin, Turchinov and Yatsenyuk ordered what’s left of the Ukrainian military to
reclaim lost territory and government offices.
Moscow views Ukraine’s armed fight as voiding the April 17 Geneva
agreement calling for a respite from violence on both sides. While the U.S. and EU initially
backed Ukraine’s pro-Western revolution, they understand the depth of Moscow’s
objections. Meeting in Washington,
Merkel hoped to convince Obama to resist calls for military escalation from
conservatives on Capitol Hill and work with Moscow and the EU to find more
acceptable leaders. Since the Feb.
22 anti-Russian coup violated Ukraine’s sovereignty, the U.S., EU and Moscow
must find leaders that serve all of Ukraine’s factions.
|
