Putin: Kiev authorities are junta if they use force against civilians
by alethoRT | April 24, 2014
If
Kiev authorities have started to use force against the civilian
population, this is a serious crime, Russian President Vladimir Putin
said. Taking this action makes them a “junta” and may affect their
relations with other countries, he added.
“If
the Kiev regime started military actions against the country’s
population, this is without doubt a very serious crime,” Putin said at
an All-Russia People's Front media forum.
According
to Putin, the current situation in East Ukraine is another proof that
Russia was right when it supported Crimeans, when they decided to have a
referendum.
“[Otherwise]
it would have seen there the same things which are now happening in the
east of Ukraine, or even worse,” he said. “That’s one more proof to the
fact we did it all right and in time.”
Putin believes that the use of force by the coup-imposed government in Kiev means that it’s actually a junta.
“If
current authorities in Kiev have done this [used force], then they are
junta,” the president said. “For one thing, they don’t have nation-wide
mandate. They might have some elements of legitimacy, but only within
the framework of the parliament. The rest of the government bodies are
for various reasons illegitimate.”
Vladimir
Putin described the use of force in eastern Ukraine as a “reprisal
raid” and said that it would have an impact on Russian-Ukrainian
relations.
Earlier in the day, fighting
erupted just outside Slavyansk, a town in eastern Ukraine where the
population voiced their protest against the Kiev authorities. Ukrainian
troops in tanks and armored vehicles have been trying to break into the
town.
According
to the Ukrainian Interior ministry, at least five self-defense guards
have been killed and one policeman injured after the “anti-terrorist
operation” launched by Kiev in the town. Three checkpoints erected by
the anti-government protesters have also been destroyed.
Self-defense
forces managed to repel an attack at one checkpoint 3 kilometers north
of Slavyansk, forcing at least three infantry vehicles to retreat,
Russia-24 TV reports.
On Wednesday,
authorities in Kiev announced they were resuming a military operation
against protesters in eastern Ukraine, which they described as an
“anti-terrorist” one.
Protesters believe the move was contrary to the agreement on de-escalation reached in Geneva.
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