Ukrainian Prime Minister, Arseny Yatseniuk, has accused Russia of wanting to start a third world war by occupying Ukraine “militarily and politically”.
“The world has not yet forgotten world war II, but Russia already wants to start world war III,” he told his interim cabinet in remarks broadcast live. “Attempts at military conflict in Ukraine will lead to a military conflict in Europe.”
In some of the strongest language he has used so far during the crisis, Yatseniuk accused Moscow of acting like a gangster supporting terrorists.
“It is clear that Russia’s goal is to wreck the election in Ukraine, remove the pro-western and pro-Ukrainian government and occupy Ukraine politically as well as military,” he added.
Both sides have deployed troops close to their frontier.
Yatseniuk took office in February after pro-European protests prompted the Kremlin-backed president to flee to Russia.
Ukraine plans to hold an election on 25 May to replace Viktor Yanukovich, but the Russian-speaking east of the country has been disrupted by pro-Moscow militants who have taken over the city of Slavyansk and public buildings elsewhere, demanding to follow Crimea and be annexed by Russia.
Russia denies involvement in the protests but has denounced the Ukrainian government, which it says is illegitimate and backed by Ukrainian nationalists it describes as fascists, and has threatened to step in to protect ethnic Russians and Russian-speakers in Ukraine.
Yatseniuk called on Moscow to fulfill its obligations to persuade activists in eastern Ukraine to lay down arms under a four-way agreement signed last week in Geneva by the two governments, as well as Ukraine’s US and EU allies.
“Russia’s support for terrorists and bandits who torture peaceful citizens is an international crime. It is a crime against humanity,” added the prime minister.
Ukraine’s state security service has accused Russian intelligence officers operating in Ukraine, and the separatist leader in Slavyansk, of involvement in the torture and murder of a local councillor from Yatseniuk’s Batkivshchyna (fatherland) party.
Source: UK Guardian
