2014-06-22 18:42:00

Ukraine's ceasefire broken, Russia urges calm


(Vatican Radio)- Russian leader Vladimir Putin has urged both sides in the conflict in neighboring Ukraine to find a compromise that would end battles between government forces and pro-Russian separatists.  

The violence, which has already killed hundreds of people, has continued despite a unilateral ceasefire announced Friday by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, prompting Moscow to puts tens of thousands of Russian troops on combat alert.

Listen to Stefan Bos' report:

Putin's call for peace came during commemorations Sunday marking the Nazi-invasion of the Soviet Union  in 1941, shortly after he also expressed support for a ceasefire.  

With fighting still raging in eastern Ukraine, President Poroshenko visited the headquarters of the military operation against pro-Russian separatists.  

He told national television that his troops try to maintain a ceasefire till early Friday, but he warned that "All illegal armed groups have to understand that the ceasefire initiated by us does not mean that Ukrainian soldiers are not allowed to fight back." He said, "Any attempts by gunmen to attack will receive a strong response.” 

REBELS REFUSE

Yet, so far pro-Russian rebels have refused to lay down their arms and clashes continue. 

Since late Friday that has led to cross border confrontations with at least one Russian border post being  shelled from Ukrainian territory. 

“Following the firing of automatic weapons, we started the evacuation," recalled Russian customs officer Roman Suris. "After that, we heard the loud blasts and the whiz of fragments," he added.  

Three Ukrainian checkpoints were reportedly also targeted, resulting in numerous injuries. Kyiv has blamed pro-Russian rebels for the attacks, which also included an attempted incursion into a Ukrainian airbase in the Donetsk region.

And pro-Russian separatists in the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic have vowed to continue their battle. 

They took an oath of allegiance at the town’s Lenin Square saying they would defend the republic to the last "drop of blood”.

SWEARING ALLEGIANCE

"We swear, we swear, we swear,” they shouted.

With fighting ongoing, tens of thousands of refugees have fled the region, including non-Orthodox Russian Christians, following attacks against churches and the kidnapping of priests by rebels.  

They say residents staying behind in besieged towns such as Slovyansk prepare to die amid water, food and energy shortages.   

Yet, thousands of Ukrainians have not give up hope. 

At Olimpiysky stadium in the capital Kyiv music fans used the 20th anniversary concert of Okean Elzy, one of Ukraine’s most successful rock bands, to call for unity.

The bands’ singer, Svyatoslav Vakarchuk, said he hopes music will help to end tensions in the east. “I never thought of us as of some revolutionary musicians. We don’t have special revolutionary songs. [However] I think, things that don’t kill us make us stronger. So I think that situation in the east will sooner or later make us stronger.”

PUTIN SUPPORT

In neighboring Russia, President Vladimir Putin also called for an end to fighting, saying it was time all sides  to negotiate. 

He expressed support for the ceasefire announced by Ukrainian President Poroshenko as part of a peace settlement that would grant amnesty to rebels if they give up  their arms, and more rights for Russian speakers. 

Yet, Russia has been criticized by the West for putting as many as 65,000 troops on combat alert, moving thousands of soldiers to Ukraine's volatile border, and allegedly providing tanks and other military equipment to rebels. 

Moscow denies is supports the ongoing insurgency. 








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