Early today Ukrainian President
Petro Poroshenko declared the end of a ceasefire with the
separatist militias in the nation’s east.
Alleging that the militants “defiantly violated the ceasefire
regime more than 100 times” over the last 10 days, Poroshenko
stated
his plan going forward:
We will attack and liberate our land. Termination of ceasefire
is our response to terrorists, insurgents, marauders, everyone who
tortures civilians, paralyzes the economy of the region, disrupts
payments of salaries, pensions, scholarships, blasts the railroad,
destroys the water pipes and deprives people of normal peaceful
life.
Today’s operation includes airstrikes and artillery fire “at the
strategic points of the terrorists,” a military official
said.
The Ukrainian president also criticized Russia’s efforts to
de-escalate the situation as merely “symbolic. … We haven’t seen
tangible measures on de-escalation of the situation and enhancement
of control over the border.”
Indeed, some separatists openly say they
themselves are Chechen mercenaries on orders from Russia. Likewise,
the militants increasing firepower, such as several tanks that
crossed the border from Russia in June, leave little doubt about
who is fanning the flames. Despite the armistice, “27 Ukrainian
servicemen had been killed and 69 wounded” in the last week and a
half,
reports Reuters.
Russia blames the U.S. for the renewed combat. “The change in
Kiev’s position … could not have come about without influence
from abroad,” the nation’s foreign ministry insists.
A Pentagon press release yesterday suggested that more U.S.
troops may be sent to NATO countries near Ukraine in response
to the unresolved crisis.
Although the White House has not yet commented on today’s
developments, Secretary of State John Kerry last Thursday
threatened that Russia had only “hours, literally” to
demonstrate that it would rein in the separatists. However, the
U.S. has implemented no new sanctions or taken other actions since
then.
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