DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — At least
30 bodies of killed fighters have been brought to a hospital following a
day of heavy fighting in Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, in which
government forces used combat jets against pro-Russia rebels, an
insurgent said Tuesday.
The rebel
fighter, who wouldn't give his name because of security concerns, said
outside the hospital in Donetsk that 30 bodies of his fellow insurgents
were delivered there. He said the truck carrying the bodies was still
parked outside the hospital, waiting for explosives experts to check it
for any unexploded ordnance.
Donetsk,
a city of 1 million, was engulfed by heavy fighting Monday when rebels
moved to seize the airport, Ukraine's second largest, and were repelled
by government forces using combat jets and helicopter gunships.
Associated Press journalists witnessed sustained intensive gun fire
throughout the day and into the night. Plumes of black smoke rose in the
air.
The battles came just as
billionaire candy magnate Petro Poroshenko claimed victory in Sunday's
presidential vote. Poroshenko, who is yet to be sworn in, has vowed to
negotiate a peaceful end to an insurgency in the east, where rebels have
seized government offices and fought Ukrainian troops for more than a
month.
Officials closed
Donetsk airport and police shut nearby streets for traffic amid the
fighting. The city mayor went on television advising residents to stay
at home.
Early Tuesday, a
group of unidentified men stormed Donetsk's main ice-hockey arena, which
was to host the 2015 world championships and set it ablaze, according
to the mayor's office.
In the
neighboring Luhansk region, the Ukrainian Border Guards Service said
that its officers engaged in a gunbattle with a group of gunmen who were
trying to break through the border from Russia. It said one intruder
was wounded and the border guards seized several vehicles loaded with
Kalashnikov assault rifles, rocket grenade launchers and explosives.
The interim government has
pledged to press ahead with the operation against insurgents, which has
angered local residents, many of whom see the authorities in Kiev as
nationalists bent on repressing Russian speakers in the east.
Speaking
at a televised government session on Tuesday, Vitaly Yarema, a deputy
prime minister in the interim cabinet said the "anti-terrorist
operation" in eastern Ukraine will go on "until all the militants are
annihilated."
Poroshenko has
described the separatists as "Somali pirates," saying that arms should
be used against "killers and terrorists," but he also indicated that he
wants a quick end to the military operation in the east.
"The anti-terrorist operation cannot and should not last two or three months," he said Monday. "It should and will last hours."
Poroshenko,
known for his pragmatism, supports building strong ties with Europe but
also has stressed the importance of mending relations with Moscow. Upon
claiming victory, he said his first step as president would be to visit
the east.
He said he hoped Russia would support his efforts to bring stability and that he wanted to hold talks with Moscow.
Russia welcomed his intention to engage in talks with people in the east and said it would be ready to work with Poroshenko.
Moscow
has denied accusations by the Ukrainian interim government and the West
that it has fomented the insurgency in the east. Russian President
Vladimir Putin has stonewalled the insurgents' appeal to join Russia and
welcomed the Ukrainian presidential election in an apparent bid to
de-escalate tensions with the West, which has plunged to a post-Cold War
low after Russia's annexation of Crimea.
Russia's
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Monday that Moscow was ready for
direct talks with Poroshenko and doesn't want the United States and the
European Union as mediators.
But
Ukraine's acting Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said that Ukraine has
no intention to talk to Russia directly. "Regarding the negotiations
with the Russian Federation, the government's stance is unchanged:
bilateral talks without the presence of the United States and the
European Union do not seem possible under current conditions," he said.
Russia
has kept pushing for Ukraine to decentralize its government, which
would give more power to regions, including those in the east, and wants
Kiev to withdraw its troops from the area.
__
Nataliya Vasilyeva in Kiev, Ukraine contributed to this report.
No comments:
Post a Comment